Heart of the Bat
by TonyStarkakaIronMan
Summary: Batman joins the Justice League and Batgirl's life begins to change. Will it be for the better? Batgirl and Nightwing's journey from the Batman series through Batman Beyond. BGBM, BGNW, BMWW.
1. Rainy Introduction

Barbara Gordan stared out into the night. The steady rain cloaked her surroundings in misty grays and yawning blacks, punctuated occasionally by the feeble yellow light of a few apartment windows. She shivered slightly, drawing her short cape closer about her athletic body, and shifted her position in the vain hope of getting somewhat out of the downpour.

_This part of Gotham's dreary enough on a nice evening, but the rain's making it downright depressing. _She sighed and wondered for the hundredth time why _he _wanted to meet here. By comparison, even the Cave was more inviting.

This was going to be their first meeting since she finally got her Masters degree from Grad school. True, she had been away for over a year, but that was no reason for him to be so standoffish. She was going to set up shop in Gotham permanently now, both as a civilian and Batgirl. After all, with Dick having struck out on his own and Robin hanging out with the Titans, someone had to keep Batman company.

Not that she really minded that role. In fact, she was looking forward to it.

_Just Bruce and I, all alone in the city . . . in the Bat Cave . . . in the bedroom . . ._

She giggled suddenly. "Getting a little ahead of ourselves, aren't we, Babs?"

It had been a long, torturous road emotionally since she had become Batgirl. Initially, she had been infatuated with Batman, but eventually she fell for Dick. Things had been progressing well until that fateful night where everything the three of them had built seemed to fall apart. Dick quit being Robin and disappeared. Bruce withdrew into himself like he always did.

It was touch and go for the better part of a year.

Eventually, he took a new Robin under his wing and things got back to normal. Dick returned as Nightwing and there was a reconciliation between the two men. But Dick had never forgiven her for staying with Bruce. He never came right out and said it, but his eyes told her enough. He felt she had betrayed him.

They were through.

It hurt, but she was a big girl. Time did, indeed, heal all wounds.

Batman had allies again and she decided to finish her schooling. Dad's gentle hints were becoming more and more insistent, and Bruce seemed to be in a good place. Besides, it was only a year or so. Somewhere during the Fall semester, she realized how much she missed him.

Absence did indeed make the heart grow fonder.

When she kept dreaming of him, she knew what she had to do.

_This isn't like it was before. I'm older, more mature. We've been through a lot together. I'm no longer just a sidekick. I can be his partner, in every sense of the word. I just have to convince---_

"Batgirl," A deep voice said from behind.

She jumped in spite of herself. _Damn! I HATE when he does that._

Batgirl stood up from her crouch and turned to face him. As usual, he was standing in the shadows, with only his cape and the eyes of his cowl visible within the inky blackness. Despite all of their time together, Batman could still creep her out sometimes.

But what really shocked her was that he wasn't alone.

The woman was beautiful. Tall with long dark tresses and a perfect, well-honed body, her costume (what there was of it, anyway) clearly indicated that she was in the Business. Even in the pouring rain, she carried herself regally, as the droplets streamed down her flawlessly smooth skin. Barbara suddenly felt herself intimidated by this newcomer and she resented Bruce for bringing her to their first reunion after such a long time apart.

"Hello, Batman. Who's your friend?" She hoped desperately that she didn't sound nearly as jealous as she felt at the moment.

"This is Wonder Woman--"

_--You've GOT to be kidding me--_

"-- a colleague of mine from the Justice League."

Wonder Woman took a long stride forward and extended a perfectly manicured hand, "Please call me Diana, Batgirl. It's a pleasure to meet one of Batman's partners."

_Polite and gracious, too. I'm hating her more already._

Batgirl took the hand immediately, unconsciously straightening her posture as she realized Wonder Woman was easily a foot taller, not to mention better endowed.

"Uh, sure, Diana. Same here." _That's a pretty firm grip you have there, honey._

"Wonder Woman, thank you for the lift. I'll see you at the next meeting."

She turned and smiled, white teeth practically glistening in the rain.

It was all Barbara could do to keep her face impassive. _She had given him a ride? Since when did Bruce rely on others for anything?_

"Hopefully we'll have some down time now. There's still so much I have to learn about Man's World. Good night." she turned back to Batgirl, "It was nice to meet you."

Barbara was about to respond when she noticed Wonder Woman was rising up into the sky. In a moment she disappeared into the clouds. A second later, she couldn't help but notice Bruce was staring after her as well.

"You've got to be kidding me! She flies, too?"

"One of her many talents, Batgirl," Batman activated the remote on his utility belt. Soon the Batmobile would arrive and they could return to the Cave.

Barbara couldn't believe what she was hearing. _That almost sounded like a compliment. What the hell had happened in the year she was away? Catwoman was one thing, but how the heck could she compete against THAT?_

"Bruce, would you mind explaining what's going on? I know I've been out of the loop for awhile, but--"

"Do you remember the alien invasion a few months ago?"

"Of course. I took down a couple of them myself before you and Superman finished the job."

"It wasn't just Superman and I. There were others, including Flash, Green Lantern, and Wonder Woman."

"Okay, I guess I remember that vaguely. The news reports weren't exactly comprehensive at the time. But the alien threat was eliminated. Why are you still--"

"We decided to form something a little more permanent, so we won't get blindsided like that again."

Barbara's eyes widened. "You mean, you've formed a team? You, the ultimate loner, on a team of metahumans? I gotta admit, Bruce, I don't understand."

_Did this Wonder Woman have something to do with your decision?_

Batman glared at her. "Someone has to keep them honest. They were going to do it anyway. Besides, I'm only in the League on a part-time basis. It shouldn't interfere with my duties in Gotham much, especially now that you're back."

"Nice to know I still have place in your life, Bruce." It came out snottier than she had wanted it to, but if he noticed it he gave no sign.

The belt beeped quietly, and Batman unhooked a grapple.

"Come on, the Batmobile's here. I've done some modifications to the Cave since you've been gone and I want you up to speed as quickly as possible."

"Okay," she followed him on his graceful descent to the street below, "Just one more question."

"What is it?"

They both touched down on the wet pavement.

"Why meet here? Why not back at the Cave?"

"I was with the League when I got your call. It was just easier this way."

"You mean, you don't trust them completely yet."

He shrugged, as the headlights of the approaching Batmobile outlined them, "Clark, yes. But the others? They haven't earned that kind of trust yet."

Barbara smiled to herself as they both got in the warm and more importantly dry confines of the Batmobile. _Take that, Wonder Bimbo. He may be interested in you, but I'm the one he's taking home tonight._

Still, her uncertainty lingered. How much impact was this Justice League going to have on them?

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

First attempt at a Justice League fan fic. There is some excellent JL fiction on this site so I'm a bit intimidated. Please review. Constructive criticism is always welcome.


	2. A Visitor to the Cave

Batgirl stared at the com-screen in disbelief.

"Where did you say you are?"

"I'm in Africa trying to stop a super-genius gorilla from taking over the world."

_You've got to be kidding me._

But she attempted to take it in stride. After all, they were in a very strange profession to begin with. She had fought a talking crocodile man before, so why not a smart ape?

"Do you need any backup?"

"No. We've got in covered. Keep watch over Gotham until I return."

Abruptly his image disappeared from the main screen in the Bat Cave, leaving her to stare at the sudden emptiness. _He _never_ needs backup these days._

Barbara removed her cowl, rubbed her eyes, and sighed. The soft sound seemed to echo continuously within the vast underground caverns. She thought it had never seemed so empty to her as it did now. Even the bats were gone now, out feeding in the night sky.

"Well, Babs, this isn't turning out at all like you planned."

The last few months had been an adjustment for her. Initially, she and Bruce spent a decent amount of time together, patrolling Gotham and crime fighting as a team. It had taken nearly three weeks to get him to relax around her again---he always seemed to regress into his personal darkness when there was no Robin---but finally things were back to the way they were.

Almost.

Now that she had to hold down a full-time job at the law library (_must be nice to be rich Bruce, because earning a paycheck really bites into my time for extra-curricular nocturnal activities)_, she was lucky if she got to spend any time as Batgirl during the workweek. That still left the weekends, but then it started to happen.

League business.

_Take care of Scarecrow while I handle this Aquaman situation, Batgirl._

_Batgirl, figure out what Rupert Thorne is up to while I help the League with Luthor's new gang._

_You're on your own tonight, Batgirl, I have monitor duty._

All she wanted was for things to settle down a bit so she could broach the subject of their relationship once again.

Not that she hadn't made a few attempts.

But he had shut her down. Put her off. Ignored her invitations and overtures.

Treated her like she was still a silly, immature co-ed.

"What am I going to do?" she asked the computer bank in front of her. "How can I prove myself to him?"

"You don't, Babs. You should know that by now."

The voice was warmth and friendly, its tone teasing yet kind. It immediately brought back a flood of memories, most of them pleasant. She spun around in the command chair and nearly leapt out of it, as she quickly embraced the man who had snuck up on her.

"Dick! It's so good to see you!"

Nightwing smiled, returning the embrace and then pulling back to get a better look at her. "Wow, Babs. I guess I should stop by more often."

Batgirl blushed slightly, realizing she probably had come on a bit strong. She was just so happy to see a friendly face besides Alfred. Still, she managed to retreat back a few steps and return to the relative safety of the chair.

Was it her imagination or had he hesitated before he released her?

"Well, what did you expect, dummy?" she said breezily, hoping to steer the conversation in another direction, "I haven't seen you in over a year."

He pulled up another chair and sat down a few feet away. "Yeah, well. I've been pretty busy. Gotham's got nothing on Bludhaven in the scum department. Not quite as many freaks down there as here, but the police department doesn't have someone like your Dad leading it, either. Hell, I think I've ended up taking down nearly as many crooked cops as criminals lately."

"Sounds rough. At least GCPD is pretty clean these days."

"True, but I think I'm making a real difference there. Besides, I couldn't play second fiddle forever." He paused, staring at her for a moment, and then continued, "But you already knew that, didn't you Babs?"

_Oh boy, here we go again. Sorry, Dick, but I'm not going to take the bait._

"So what brings you to Gotham, Dick? He's out of town, you know."

"What makes you so sure I came to see him?"

He smirked.

_Oh you think you're so clever, Mr. Grayson, with your witty banter and positively gorgeous body under that skintight---Oops. Let's try to focus here, Barbara._

"Ha, ha, Richard. But seriously—" she spun the chair around to face the giant screen again, a few deft key strokes bringing up various status reports on Gotham, "---what brings you to town? Did you forget how to use the phone?"

Nightwing rolled his chair next to hers, studying some of the information she currently had up. "Actually, I came to use the lab. I have a decent set up back at my place, but Bruce always did have the best toys. Besides, Alfred had mentioned you were back and so---"

"Aw! You came all the way up here to see little ol' me?"

_Why am I flirting with him? He's the one who broke it off with me!_

"In part."

He leaned back in the chair, staring absently at the monitor. "I was also wondering how he's doing? I mean, for real. Alfred only knows so much. But you," he turned to look at her, "you _are_ his current favorite."

_Well, that almost sounds like an insult, doesn't it?_

"Don't be so sure of that. He's spending almost as much time with the Justice League as he does with me nowadays. You wouldn't believe some of the stuff they have to deal with."

"So fill me in. What kind of baddies can take on Superman, Green Lantern, Flash, _and_ Bruce?"

_You're leaving out Wonder Bimbo._

She told him all she knew, which wasn't much to be truthful. But then Dick had the great idea of trying to hack into Bruce's files to get the real deal on the League. It took them nearly three hours, but they finally broke into some of the medium-security files. The rest of the evening flew by as they took turns reading, laughing, and discussing what Bruce had wrote.

"Hmmm. He seems pretty impressed with this Hawk Girl."

"You think so?" Nightwing said, yawning, "I'd saw he's a lot more impressed with Wonder Woman. Say, have you seen her in person? Talk about a babe."

She abruptly turned off the computer and stood up. "Time to call it a night, Nightwing."

"Huh? What's the matter, Babs?"

She pulled her cowl back up over her face, hoping to conceal her emotions from him.

"Some of us have to hold down a full-time job, you know."

"Hey," he stood up and put a hand on her shoulder. His voice softened, concerned, "What's going on, Barbara?"

She pushed him away, "Just leave me alone, you jerk. Don't you have some test tubes to play with?"

Before he could reply, the Bat Cave sensors went off, indicating that the Bat Wing was about to return. They both rushed to the landing pad, although Nightwing kept a respectable distance back. Whether it was because of her earlier request or because Dick wasn't certain how Bruce would react to his visit, she wasn't sure. Right now, she just wanted to compose herself.

A few tense minutes passed and the Dark Knight finally graced them with his presence.

"How'd it go, Batman?" she asked, keeping it professional in front of Dick.

"We won," he said simply.

She almost gasped when she first caught sight of his gloves. They were bloody and torn.

"What happened to your hands, Bruce?"

He glanced down absently. "It's nothing. Don't worry about it."

Batman strode toward his former apprentice.

"What do you need, Nightwing?"

"Well, hello to you, too, Bruce."

Barbara tuned out the rest of their exchange as she walked slowly to her motorcycle.

_That's right, Bruce. Keeping shutting me out. Pretty soon, you're going to find yourself without a partner once again._

Now if only her heart could let him go as well.


	3. A Cat Comes Calling

Batgirl casually ducked the sloppy punch and quickly landed a perfect uppercut. The large man's head snapped back in an arc followed by the rest of his body. He hit the ground hard and lay still in the dusty air of the abandoned warehouse.

_Now THIS is more like it._

Her finely honed combat senses noticed a second thug charging up from behind. She dropped into a crouch, shot out a leg, and spun quickly. The leg sweep caught the man in the shins, tripping him up just enough for momentum to do the rest. Before he could recover from the fall, a deft chop to the back of the neck put the criminal down for the count.

Sudden gunfire didn't give her any time to gloat.

Batgirl sprung into the air, tucked her body into a tight ball, and dove behind some crates, hoping something substantial enough to block bullets was inside them. This tactical retreat allowed her time to produce a Batarang from her utility belt and assess the situation.

The Riddler still had two thugs left, although they appeared to have had enough for one night. Right now they were retreating from the building, probably to some sort of getaway vehicle. _Oh no you don't, Enigma! I didn't spend six hours piecing together those damn riddles only to let you escape now._

She leapt to the top of the stack of crates she had taken refuge behind, pulling out her grapple at the same time. The instant she saw her target, the Batarang was away, and she dove off the boxes. As her weapon smacked into the head of yet another foe, she fired the grapple at a crossbeam. It caught the girder perfectly, swinging her towards the final two enemies with remarkable speed.

Batgirl let go at the apex of the swing, assumed a classic flying kick position, and drove her foot into the small of the last thug's back. He fell forward with a grunt, handgun clattering away. _He's not getting up anytime soon._

Riddler bolted through the door, slamming it shut behind him. A second later she heard the click of a lock. She cursed, sparing a second to make sure the man she had hit with the Batarang was no longer a threat, and charged at the door.

She realized as she approached that it was too thick for her to break through. Fortunately, the window nearby was not. Ducking her head down and drawing her cape around her upper torso, Batgirl dove through the glass without hesitation.

An instant later she rolled to her feet, broken glass glistening in the lamp light like freshly fallen snow. A single scratch on her cheek appeared to be her only injury. She glanced to her left and then the right. _There he is._

The Riddler was sprinting down the alley, knocking over garbage cans and slipping on puddles. Batgirl popped out the bolas, stood up as she whirled them, and cast them with a careful flip of the wrist.

They twirled through the night air, flashing between the pools of light provided by the outdoor lamps, and caught up to the villain just as he was about to round the corner into the street. Immediately both his arms and upper legs were snared and the Riddler tumbled roughly to the road, cracking his head against the curb.

Batgirl ran up to her quarry. Enigma was out cold, blood welling from the head wound. A quick examination showed it not to be too serious. _Probably a concussion._

Even now, sirens were closing in. Gotham's finest would be here shortly. She stuck a bandage on the Riddler's gash, dragged him back into the warehouse, and secured all the prisoners. Just before the door burst open and the police stormed in, Batgirl retrieved her grapple, fired it straight up, and left the scene via the same skylight she had used moments before to gain entry to the Riddler's temporary lair.

It was a nice, clear night. The crescent moon's muted illumination allowed the stars to put on a show and the fall air felt refreshing on her cheeks. All in all, it had been a good night. _Bruce has been in Europe for almost a week, yet I've been able to keep a lid on Gotham this whole time. Didn't even need to call him for help with the riddles. Take that, Mr. I-am-vengeance-I-am-the-night. Even Dick couldn't have done it any better._

_Too bad no one was there to see it._

Someone's slow, sarcastic clapping proved that last thought a lie.

Barbara spun, Batarang in hand, as she zeroed in on the source of the impromptu applause. It was coming from the next building over.

"Bravo, flying mouse. Old Eddy never knew what hit him."

A lithe, sensuous form practically flowed across the gap between the warehouses, cart wheeled a few times, and finally stood lazily about ten feet away from her. The woman cocked her head appraisingly, one hand resting on a nicely curved hip, while the other casually grasped the handle of the whip currently wrapped tightly around her thin waist.

"Catwoman!" Barbara assumed a defensive stance, moving her hand back, ready to throw the Batarang. "What do you want?"

"Relax, Batgirl," Catwoman drawled, "I'm not here for a fight. In fact, I'm not here to talk to you at all." She glanced around the roof, taking a few steps towards her. "Where's Batman?"

Barbara relaxed slightly. Her relationship with Catwoman was an odd one. They'd traded quips nearly as often as they had traded blows. In fact, this was the first time they'd encountered each other since she had returned from college. Perhaps Catwoman was on the side of the angels these days. The files in the Bat Cave hadn't revealed any recent crimes, at any rate.

"He's not here," she replied, "Is there something I can help you with?"

Catwoman was now looking down on the police cars, idly fingering her whip. She smiled slowly, "Oh, I don't think so. What I need only _he_ can provide. If you gather my meaning . . ."

She laughed, striking another sultry pose.

Barbara blushed despite herself. _What does Bruce see in this skank? Well, besides the obvious sights . . ._

"What's the matter, flying mouse? Cat got your tongue?"

"Sorry to disappoint you, but Batman's not even in town," she knew that she probably shouldn't be giving out that particular piece of information, but at the moment she really didn't care, "Besides, I hardly think he'd want to waste any more time on the likes of you. After all, he does have some standards."

The woman in the form-fitting costume stiffened and then burst out giggling.

"My, my, Batgirl! Am I sensing a bit of the Green-eyed Monster? Things didn't work out with the Boy Wonder, so you've decided to make a play for Tall, Dark, and Sexy?"

Now it was Barbara's turn to stiffen.

"That's none of your business." She put away her Batarang and began to walk, "Now if you'll excuse me, it's been a long night."

Suddenly, Catwoman blocked her path.

"So you don't deny it," she purred, pulling the whip taut between her outstretched arms. "You don't seriously think you have a chance, do you? Batman needs a real woman, not some little girl with a crush."

Barbara sighed. _I need this like a hole in the head._

"At least I'm not a criminal," she spat.

"At least I've actually kissed him."

The punch was quick, and Catwoman barely got out of the way in time. Batgirl followed up with a kick, catching her foe in the mid-section. Catwoman doubled over, but then lashed out with her claws, leaving four deep scratches on her right leg.

Barbara winced in pain and backed up.

"Struck a nerve, did I?" Catwoman hissed and cracked her whip.

Fired lanced down Batgirl's left arm as the whip bit right through her Kevlar. She drove forward as her foe raised the whip for another strike and tackled her. The two women hit the ground in a heap.

"Get off of me!" Catwoman demanded, hands clamping down on Barbara's shoulders, claws leaving deep marks in her skin.

Batgirl gasped and then head-butted her foe.

Catwoman released her, hands flying back to cover her injured face.

Batgirl backed off, staggering somewhat and favoring her left leg. "Had enough yet?"

_Please say yes, 'cause I've got to go to work in about four hours._

Catwoman sat up. Blood was trickling down her face. "I think you broke my nose." 

"I'm sorry about that," and she truly was, "but you did bring the whip into it."

The woman pinched her nose shut and cast around for the weapon in question. When she finally found it, she stood up and began to walk away.

"It's pointless to fight over him anyway. He's moved on."

Batgirl let those words sink in before she spoke out, "What do you mean?"

Catwoman turned, eyes filled with an emotion Barbara had never seen there before.

Sadness. And regret.

"You're his partner. You tell me."

With that, Catwoman dove off the building and disappeared into the night, leaving Barbara Gordan alone with her thoughts.

-------

She didn't get home until nearly four AM.

She stitched up the worst of the scratches, caught a couple hours of sleep, and showered. After dressing, she glanced at the morning paper while waiting for the toaster to do its thing. The glass of orange juice she was holding slipped through her hand when she got to the Society Page.

**Bruce Wayne Wines and Dines Them in Kasnia **the caption blared, but Barbara barely noticed the print, so focused was she on the full-color photo. There was Bruce looking quite handsome as he smiled, dancing with . . . her.

There was no doubt about it. She was well-trained at recognizing faces. She may be out of uniform, but that was the Amazon princess.

Barbara crumpled the paper and tossed it away.

Unwanted, Catwoman's words echoed in her mind.

_He's moved on._

Maybe it was time she did, too.


	4. Turning Point

"I think I'll be turning in, Mistress Barbara."

"How many times have I asked you not to call me that?"

"About as many times as I have ignored your request to do so, I would think."

Alfred placed the tray of tea and snacks next to the computer console and glanced at the various windows she had up on the main screen. Barbara's stomach growled noisily and she gratefully began to eat.

"Mmm," she sighed, "Oh, this is SO good, Alfred. Thank you."

"It is my pleasure, Mistress Barbara. I'm just happy someone here enjoys my cooking. Master Bruce rarely takes time to eat these days, I'm afraid."

"Tell me about it," she paused as Alfred handed her a cup of tea, "Thanks."

She smiled gratefully at the Englishman, "Bruce doesn't know what he's missing. You can cook for me any time."

Alfred smiled, "I took the liberty of preparing a few dishes for you. You will find them in the refrigerator inside some of those dreadful Tupperwear containers. I hate to put such fine food in a plastic container, but I must admit they stay sealed rather well."

"You didn't have to do that, Alfred. I'm perfectly capable of making my own dinner."

"Oh, it was no bother at all," Alfred said, beginning the long climb back to the secret entrance behind the grandfather clock. "I know your new career is keeping you rather busy, even without your . . . nocturnal activities."

Barbara smiled gratefully at the old man, "Right as usual, Alfred. Thanks again, and good night."

"Try not to stay so late, Mistress Barbara, a young lady such as yourself needs her rest."

"Don't worry, Alfred, Gotham's pretty quiet tonight. Bruce told me I didn't have to wait for him to get back from whatever League business he has. I'll be out of here soon. In fact, I probably won't be back until the weekend."

"Ah, yes, League business," the butler stopped about halfway up the stairs. Alfred sighed, his knees just weren't what they used to be. "It seems to take up a lot of his time these days, doesn't it."

"You've noticed it, too, huh?"

"I dare say, there is little that happens in Master Bruce's life that I am not aware of." Alfred sniffed. _And precious little in yours, Mistress Barbara._

Bargirl pondered that statement as she took another sip of teal. Alfred was almost to the top of the stairs when she called out to him again.

"Alfred?"

The Englishman stopped on the upper level, about to activate the clock exit.

"Yes, Mistress Barbara?"

"Have you . . . noticed anything different about Bruce since he's joined the League?"

The butler paused. _Oh, dear._

"Different, Mistress Barbara?" 

"Don't play games with me, Alfred. Surely you've spoken to him about his involvement with the team. I mean, it is a bit high profile for him. Teaming up with Superman once in awhile is one thing, but just last week he was on national television throwing down with the Secret Society! He claims it's just part-time, but it seems like he's up on the Watchtower quite a lot."

Alfred continued to stare at her impassively.

Batgirl stood up and walked towards him.

"It's not just business, any more, is it?"

Alfred sighed, "Mistress Barbara, I hardly think—"

"There's something personal going on, isn't there, Alfred?"

The Englishman was quiet once again.

"I'm not stupid," Barbara spat, more angry at herself than Alfred, "It's that Wonder Woman, isn't it? He's in love with her." _And not with me._

There. She had finally admitted it to herself.

"If I might be so bold, may I suggest this is a conversation you need to have with Master Bruce?"

Tears came unbidden, and Barbara turned away from Alfred, wiping her eyes with one hand. She sat back down in front of the computer.

"Good night, Alfred," she said dismissively.

He paused, wanting to help, but at the same time realizing he could not.

"Good night, Mistress Barbara."

Alfred opened the clock, stepped through, and closed it behind him.

He sighed. Was it his lot in life to bear witness to such sadness and loss in good people? 

Batman returned to the cave a few hours later and quickly surveyed his surroundings.

Everything appeared to be in order.

Satisfied, he began to take off his costume. As he did so, he made several mental notes. A couple bullet holes in the cape. A tear along the torso. The belt had a few compartments that needed to be replenished. He was down a couple Batarangs. All in all, it was nothing that couldn't wait until tomorrow.

Stripped down to his pants, he grabbed a towel. A quick shower and then some much needed rest.

"Bruce."

He actually flinched.

_Either I'm more tired than I thought, or she's gotten that much better._

"I thought I told you, you could go home early tonight," he said in his Batman tone, annoyed at her both for ignoring his order and successfully sneaking up on him.

"We need to talk."

She appeared out of the shadows, wearing the Batgirl costume sans cowl. He could tell right away something was amiss. Barbara's face, usually so friendly and open, was grave.

"Barbara, what's wrong?" he slipped back into his normal voice, truly concerned.

She walked right up to him, stopped a mere foot away, and stared up into his eyes.

He met her gaze, confused. "Barbara, what—"

"Shhh." She put a finger to his lips.

Barbara moved up against him, placed her hands on his chest, and kissed him tenderly.

Shocked, he wasn't sure how to respond. Before he could give it much thought, she broke the kiss and stepped back.

"Okay, Barbara, you've got me at a loss here."

She laughed, but the sound was without humor.

"The World's Greatest Detective at a loss for words. Who would have thought someone so intelligent could be so stupid."

Bruce shook his head. "You're not making much sense."

Barbara sighed.

"Bruce, why do you think I came back to Gotham?"

"You lived her all your life," he stated, "Your father lives here."

"That doesn't matter," She closed in again, putting him back on his heels, "I could have started over in a new city. I could have struck off on my own like Dick. But I didn't."

"Then you came back because you believed in the Mission."

Barbara smiled, and for a moment he thought she was going to kiss him again.

But the smile turned sad; forlorn and difficult for him to gaze upon.

When she finally spoke, the words were soft, barely a whisper, but they seemed to fill the entire cavern.

"I came back for you, Bruce," her eyes glistened and she blinked, causing a single tear to form and trickle down her soft cheek, "I loved you."

"Barbara," he went to embrace her, wanting to help her, wanting to provide comfort.

She pushed him away.

"Don't make this any harder than it already is," she reached back and donned her mask.

He began to open his mouth, but she cut him off.

"I know you don't love me, Bruce. For a while I thought perhaps you were incapable of loving anyone that way. If that had been the case, I could have dealt with it eventually and we could have continued the Mission together, regardless of my feelings."

"But then you met _her._"

Understanding dawned. And here he thought his emotions were under lock and key, incapable of betraying him.

"You mean Diana."

"Oh, so you're on a _first_ name basis, now?" Barbara tried to hide her jealousy, but was failing miserably, "I guess that shouldn't surprise me."

"Barbara, it's not what you think. Diana is a respected colleague, just like Clark and the others."

"Don't lie to me, Bruce!" she shouted, voice reverberating throughout the Batcave. She swallowed hard, regaining her composure. "You don't have to explain anything to me. I know how you feel, even if you're not willing to admit it to yourself."

She turned away from him, head bowed.

"I can't be like you, Bruce. I can't submerge my emotions until they all but disappear in the depths of my soul. Frankly, I don't want to be like that. It's a lonely way to go through life."

Bruce watched her, helplessly.

"Barbara," he spoke softly, earnestly, "There are very good reasons why I cannot allow myself to enter into the kind of relationship you're—"

"Spare me, Bruce. That excuse flies out the window when the women in question are already in the Business. I risk my life a dozen times a week out there, and I don't even have any super powers."

Bruce sighed.

"What do you want me to say, Barbara?"

"I want you to open up, Bruce. I want you to have the courage to allow yourself to have emotions. If not for me, then for yourself. Life's too short to do otherwise."

She turned around to face him once again.

"I've made my decision. I'm going to make it easy for you."

He didn't like where this was going.

"I know you don't have the same feelings for me as I do for you. I've finally accepted that. But I can't just turn my emotions off. It's going to take time to get over you, and I can't do that if I see you almost every day and fight along side you almost every night."

She gritted her teeth and finished, "I'm leaving, Bruce. I'm never coming back to the cave again, and just as soon as I can get a transfer, I'll be leaving Gotham, too."

She approached him and softly caressed the side of his face.

"Good bye, Bruce. I hope you'll be happy someday."

"Barbara, you don't need to go. Please don't do this."

She held his gaze. "Do you love me, Bruce?"

He knew he couldn't give her the answer she desired, so he said nothing.

She kissed him on the cheek, gave him a quick embrace, and walked back into the darkness of the caverns. He heard her bike start up and head for the exit.

Moments later, she was gone.

Bruce Wayne stood alone in the cave for a long time afterward, lost in thought, his eyes focused on something only he could see. Absently, he brought his hand up to where she had kissed him.

Then he walked over to his laboratory and began to work once again.


	5. Invasion

"A global curfew has been established by the Thanagarian army. All citizens are to remain within their homes from sunset until sunrise. Failure to comply will result in immediate arrest and detention. Resisters will be dealt with by force if necessary. In addition, the Justice League has been ordered to turn themselves in immediately. Any citizen found collaborating with the League in any way will be severely punished. Cooperation is the best method for ending the martial law. The Thanagarians have no wish to harm any Terrans. I repeat, the Thanagarians wish us no harm. They will leave Earth just as soon as they have accomplished their mission."

The television anchor woman was doing her best to remain calm and professional, but the beads of sweat on her forehead and the way she occasionally glanced warily off camera probably did little to reassure her viewers.

Barbara couldn't believe what has happening.

_It's like something out of Hollywood! And here I thought Hawkgirl was one of the good guys. _

Barbara turned off the remote, having had enough of the transparent propaganda, and slumped back on the couch. She closed her eyes, trying to figure out what to do next.

She had only been in Bludhaven for a few days, hardly enough time to become familiar with the local geography. Batgirl (considering her age, perhaps Batwoman would be a better choice these days) was supposed to make her debut in town this upcoming weekend, but circumstances being what they were, perhaps her timetable would have to move up.

She was in the middle of donning her costume when someone knocked on her door.

Quietly, she made her way to the peephole and peeked.

She immediately relaxed, unlocked the door, and opened it.

"Hello, Dick."

The handsome young man smiled grimly and stepped inside. Barbara scanned the hallway to be sure no one was watching and closed the door, bolting it securely.

Dick was already peering cautiously through the blinds of her living room window.

"I wish we were meeting under better circumstances, Babs." He turned to look at her, and smiled. "I see great minds think alike," indicating her costume. He undid the belt on his trench coat, revealing the dark blue uniform of Nightwing.

"What, no house-warming gift?" she teased, trying to keep it light despite the seemingly overwhelming odds they were about to face.

"Maybe later." Nightwing put his mask on and opened the window carefully, "Will you accept a night on the town instead?"

"You sure know how to treat a girl," She tugged her cowl down into position.

Nightwing pushed the blinds out of the way as she approached.

"Ladies first."

-----

"I'll say this for them," Batgirl exclaimed as her haymaker finally downed the last of the Hawk Warriors in the squad they had ambushed, "They can take a punch."

She gingerly held her hands in front of her face, grimacing as she made a fist, "I don't think I've bruised my knuckles this badly since I went five rounds with Killer Croc."

Nightwing smiled at her as he picked up some of the Thanagarian weaponry the soldiers had dropped during the battle. "That's to be expected, Batgirl. These are highly trained warriors, not common street thugs. After all, they did manage to take down the Justice League."

Barbara moved over to him as she scanned the vicinity for more patrols. She didn't relish another encounter so soon.

"What are you going to use those for?" she asked, indicating the weapons.

"Just a little something to help even the odds," Dick sighted the scope of one of the energy rifles and squeezed off a short burst. The beam left a scorch mark on the masonry of a building across the street. "Here, take one."

"I don't know," she reluctantly took the weapon he had held out for her, "How do you know these aren't lethal?"

"I don't," he looked hard at her, "but in case you haven't noticed, we're at war here. I hardly think the normal rules apply now."

"But Bruce---"

"Bruce could be dead for all we know, Babs. You saw how easily the League was taken down the first time. Who's to say the Thanagarians won't be able to do it again?"

"I can't except that. Hawkgirl's betrayal took them by surprise, that's all. They'll be ready this time."

Nightwing looked away and was silent for a moment.

Finally, he spoke, voice quiet but full of grim determination.

"I hope you're right, Barbara. I really do. But I'm not going to count on it. Bludhaven is my city now. I'm its protector and I can't afford the luxury of hoping the League will pull out another miraculous victory."

He strapped the rifle to his back and turned to face her.

"We've got to keep on the move. No telling when another patrol will arrive."

Batgirl stared at him, still holding the rifle awkwardly in front of her.

"Are you with me?" he asked softly.

The question seemed to hang in the night's crisp air, hovering between them in the black stillness of the skyscraper's roof.

"Yes, Dick. I'm with you," she slung the rifle over her shoulder and followed him.

_If for no other reason than to keep you from doing something you'll regret._

-----

"Let me go!" Batgirl screamed as the Hawk Warrior nearly crushed her in a bear hug. The ground spun away dizzily as the Thanagarian's wings carried them higher and higher into the cloudy sky.

"Foolish human," the bearded warrior muttered, continuing his ascent while slowly driving the air from her lungs, "How lucky for you the Commander gave orders to bring resisters in alive. Otherwise, I'd simply drop you and laugh as you fell to your death."

Barbara glanced downward. They had to be close to a thousand feet up now and increasing fast. She tucked her chin against her chest and went limp.

"Bah! Earth females are even more pathetic than the males."

The Hawk Warrror's grip loosened slightly.

Immediately she threw her head back with as much force as possible, smashing into her opponent's face.

The Thanagarian grunted in surprise and then howled in pain as his nose broke, splattering blood everywhere. He released her, and she caught a hold of one of his legs before she fell.

_Here's hoping their anatomy isn't all that different from ours._

Batgirl drove her fist up and into the Hawk Warrior's groin.

She was rewarded with a sudden gasp, followed a strangled whimper.

Her winged foe passed out and began to fall back to earth.

"Maybe I didn't think this through," she said to herself as they picked up speed.

Batgirl scrambled around to the back of his foe and began to pull on his wings. She managed to force them most of the way open and they began to catch the wind.

"Come on! Come on!"

Their descent began to slow, but they were still coming in too fast.

Barbara swore as their trajectory sent them straight towards the side of an office building. With precious seconds to spare, she yanked hard on one wing while pulling the other one closed.

The unconscious Thanagarian banked just enough to avoid a collision and was now diving towards the street. Batgirl pulled back on both wings, slowing their descent further. When they were about 20 feet above ground, she pulled out her grapple, fired it at a nearby ledge, and let the Hawk Warrior skid into the street as she swung free.

She barely had time to consider checking on the condition of her opponent when three more Thanagarians attacked her.

She ducked under a mace and kicked its wielder in the stomach. She spun just out of reach of some kind of axe and back flipped out of close quarters.

Batgirl barely dove off the building before the energy blast from the final foe blew up most of the roof.

The force of the explosion tossed like a leaf.

She landed poorly, spraining her left ankle.

_Where the hell is Dick?_

Barbara had lost sight of him when this patrol had ambushed them.

She threw her final two explosive Batarangs at the Hawk Warriors pursuing her, and limped into the relatively darkness of an alley as the bombs knocked them from the sky.

_I just need to get under cover so I can disappear. Then I can try to find Dick._

A second later, the entire alley was hit with a powerful spotlight.

Barbara squinted, raising a hand to shield her eyes.

A half dozen Thanagarians awaited her in the narrow passage.

Another dozen stared down at her from the rooftops, looking a lot like vultures waiting patiently for their meal.

"Surrender, human." One of them called, as the rest raised their weapons.

Batgirl straightened up and smiled grimly.

"Why don't you make me?"

Several energy rifles fired as one, and Barbara Gordan's world went black.


	6. Prisoners

Her world was bathed in darkness.

As she floated through the inky void, images came unbidden.

---her mother's gravestone as big as she is---

---a frying pan filled with the burnt remains of dinner for Daddy---

---Jim Gordan's beaming face as she tossed her cap in the air---

She seemed to swirl endlessly in this starless night as more scenes appeared.

---a man dressed as a bat fighting Harvey Bullock---

---a spotlight centered on her from a street far below---

---her holding on for dear life as Catwoman speeds away on a motorcycle---

Patches of gray began to coalesce out of the darkness. Blobs of purple waft lazily around her. More memories slide by, faster and faster.

---terror as she tries to escape from an abandoned oil rig---

---standing in shock as Dick decks Bruce on the rooftop---

---flying on the back of Kara, soul bursting with sheer joy---

---waiting on a lonely rooftop in the rain for Bruce to show---

Sounds now, tearing at the void. Someone calling her, someone trying to make her---

"Wake up, Babs."

"Wha…."

"Barbara, can you hear me?"

Her eyes flicker. Her lids do not want to open.

"Are you okay?"

Suddenly, it all comes back to her.

Batgirl bolts upright and immediately regrets it as a general ache suffuses her entire body. "Ouch!"

She hears a familiar chuckle and turns to see Dick next to her.

_God, he looks terrible._

He smiles at her, but his eyes betray worry. She notices he's been restrained in some kind of hi-tech manacle that covers his lower arms. A second later, she realizes her arms are immobilized in the same way.

"What happened?"

"We've been captured."

"How long have I been out?"

"I'm not sure. I only woke up myself a few minutes ago. No way to tell how much time has passed. All of our gear is gone, including my watch."

Barbara glanced down. Her utility belt was missing.

"I'm feeling pretty hungry," Dick continued, settling back gingerly on the floor of the chamber they shared. His motions seem awkward and uncertain to her. "So I'd say it's been a good eight to ten hours at least."

She looked around quickly, examining her surroundings.

What she saw brought her little hope for escape. The room was bare and well lit. The ceiling and three walls were completely smooth. A slight distortions in the air around the strange alien bars that formed the front of the cell catches her eye.

_Probably some kind of force field._

Craning her neck, she spots two Thanagarians in the passage beyond the bars, both heavily armed. She doubted they were the only guards.

Barbara sighed and looked back at her cellmate, taking note of his various wounds. His face was bruised and his costume was torn and covered in dried blood.

"What happened to you, Dick? I couldn't find you after we were ambushed."

"Near as I can tell, that initial blast threw us in opposite directions. You must have been forced upward while I was knocked to the ground," he stops for a moment and coughs, "I gave them a good fight, but there were so many of them. I probably took out five or six before they simply overwhelmed me."

He smiled, "Must have pissed them off, 'cause they worked me over pretty good."

"My God, Dick, is anything broken?" she blurted out, concerned. While injuries were part of the territory in their business, she hadn't seen him this beat up in quite awhile.

He was quiet for a while, avoiding eye contact with her.

"Dick? Answer me." She moved closer to him, so that they both now rested against a wall.

"I'm having trouble breathing," he finally admitted, "I think a couple ribs are busted. My left arm hurts like hell beneath the elbow. Probably a broken bone in my forearm."

"We need to get you some medical attention."

He laughed and then hissed in pain, "I don't think these guys have heard of the Geneva Convention, Babs."

"Ha, ha. Very funny, Mr. Grayson," she bent over, carefully placing her head on his chest. "Take a deep breath," she commanded.

Nightwing grimaced as he inhaled unsteadily.

"Let it out slowly."

She felt him shudder slightly. Barbara sat back up, noticing the blood that had begun trickling from the corner of his mouth.

"Well, Doc?"

"It's serious. The left side of your rib cage is wobbling as you breathe. If I had to guess, I'd say you have at least two broken ribs. You also have a bump on your right side that shouldn't be there. It's probably another rib bent out of shape. Plus, it looks like you've got internal bleeding."

"Nah, I just bit my tongue."

She glared at him.

He reddened slightly. "Okay, bad joke."

Dick tilted his head back and considered the ceiling, "Where's Alfred when you need him?"

"I'd say Alfred probably wouldn't be enough. You'd need Leslie."

"Well, odds are we won't be seeing either of them anytime soon."

Dick closed his eyes. A few seconds later, he coughed up more blood.

As Barbara watched him, she realized how pale he had become.

_He needs help. We've got to get out of here._

Carefully balancing herself, as the manacles restricted her movement, she rose to her feet.

Nightwing's eyes snapped open. "What are you doing?"

"I'm going to get you some help."

"Babs, don't be stupid!" he began to clamber to his feet, winced in pain, and gave up, sliding back to the floor, "We're prisoners of war. We're probably lucky to be alive."

Barbara ignored him.

She got as close to the bars as she felt she could without triggering the force field.

"Hey! Hey! This man is injured! We need a doctor!"

One of the Hawk Warriors stared impassively at her.

"Can you hear me?" she began to shout louder, "I said, this man needs help!"

The Thanagarian strode up to the bars and tried to stare her down.

She kept her eyes on his face, refusing to be intimidated.

"I know you can understand me. Is there a medic here?"

"Our medic is busy helping our soldiers," the guard gestured behind her towards Nightwing, "Comrades that one injured in the first place."

"You can't just leave him like that." she stated, anger building inside her as she realized just how helpless they truly were.

The Thanagarian inched a little close, sneering at her, "If you prefer, I could simply put him out of his misery."

For a single second she stood in shock.

"You bastard!"

Impulsively she attempted to strike him, but the moment her arms got close, the energy field crackled spectacularly and her body was slammed backward into the cell. She hit the rear wall hard and groaned as she collapsed.

Laughing, the alien resumed his post.

Nightwing called over to her, "Are you okay?"

Batgirl got to her feet slowly and defiantly walked back to the bars.

"You'll never win, you know! There are others like us. We'll never give up. And neither will the Justice League."

The guards ignored her.

"You haven't found them yet, have you? You won't find them until they want to be found. And trust me, when that happens, you'll wish you never came to Earth."

She tried to keep the desperation out of her voice as she spoke, and she continued to talk, as if somehow vocalizing her hopes would make them come true.

Finally, the Thanagarians tired of her voice. One of them hit a panel on a nearby wall and the force field went opaque. They could not longer see or hear her.

"Feel better now?"

She turned to look back at Dick. He had coughed up more blood. His chin and chest were covered in it. Frustration, fear, and fury all welled up simultaneously from her gut and the tears finally began to flow.

Bruce wouldn't have approved of this show of emotion. He would have considered it a weakness. But Dick's eyes were warm and caring.

He understood.

"Hey, Babs, don't worry. It'll work out . . . somehow."

Barbara tried to wipe her eyes with her shoulders.

"Why don't you sit back down? Save your strength."

She walked back and sat down right next to him.

"I'd give you a hug, because you certainly look like you need one," he said, "but I can't really do that with this thing on." He indicated the manacles, which she noticed were also now flecked with blood.

"Don't worry about me, Dick. It's you we should be concerned with."

For once, Dick Grayson made no snappy comeback.

After a few minutes of silence, Barbara leaned her head against his shoulder.

A few moments after that, she slipped off into a restless sleep.

Nightwing watched the young woman slumber for a long time, as the jagged pain in his chest kept him awake. He thought she had never looked lovelier to him.

"Why did I ever let you go?" he whispered.

If Barbara heard him, she gave no sign.

---------

Just a quick thank you for all the reviews. I appreciate it. If hits are any indication, this fic seems to be fairly popular. So if you haven't already, please send a review. Let me know what you think. Constructive criticism is always welcome.


	7. Confession

Barbara awoke from a nightmare, bolting upright and gasping for breath.

As her eyes adjusted to the darkness (_When did they turn off the lights?_), she quickly glanced around the cell. The fearful remnants of her dream faded away into her subconscious only to be replaced with true terror as she remembered Dick's condition.

She could barely make him out, sitting propped up against the wall. He was holding her hand weakly.

_Wait a minute. _

The manacles were gone.

Barbara searched the room more carefully this time, spying two plates of some kind of food in the center. _I guess they removed them while I was asleep, but why didn't Dick wake me up? _

_He would have. Unless . . . _

"Dick?"

No response.

She squeezed his hand gently and reached out to nudge his shoulder.

"Dick. Wake up."

Alarmed now, she shook his arm and tapped his cheek firmly. When that didn't work, she moved closer and placed her head on his chest.

His heart still beat, albeit slowly.

She moved up to his face, barely an inch away.

"Please wake up," she whispered.

Tears began to well. She blinked once, sending them on a gentle journey down her cheeks.

Her lips gently brushed his without thinking.

"Please."

His eyes shot open and locked with hers.

A crooked smile and a wink followed.

"Taking advantage of me, Babs? What would the Commissioner think?"

"You're impossible!"

She backed away, both embarrassed and relieved at the same time.

An uncomfortable silence hung in the air for several minutes.

"So," Dick whispered at last, "What happened to the lights?"

"I was hoping you could tell me."

Dick shifted slightly, wincing, although he made no noise.

Barbara wasn't fooled.

"Stay still. It looks like they finally brought us some food. I'll bring it to you."

The meal looked disgusting, even though they could barely make out what it was. _Perhaps that's a good thing_, she mused. Still, hunger was the best spice, and a few minutes later both plates were empty.

"Well, I have had worse," Dick admitted, putting the plate aside.

"Don't let Alfred hear you say that."

"It wasn't Alfred. Bruce cooked once when Alfred went back to England on vacation. Trust me, it wasn't pretty."

Barbara laughed, "I have a hard time imagining Bruce in the kitchen."

"Don't even get me started on what he did to the laundry. He---"

Dick began to cough violently.

She quickly held him by the shoulders, trying to keep him from aggravating his ribs. She was only partially successful, as he heaved up more blood. By the time the coughing subsided, Nightwing was gasping for breath and obviously in great pain.

"Here," she took off her cape and cowl, bundling them together into a crude pillow which she placed behind his head, "Lean back against this."

"I think you missed your calling, Babs," Dick whispered weakly, "All you need is a bedpan to empty and you'll be set."

"Why don't you just be quiet and conserve your energy."

"Conserve it for what? No one's coming for us."

"Don't be so sure. The Justice League will---"

"The Justice League got its ass handed to it," Dick said with as much force as he could. "Besides, no one knows we were caught."

"Have some faith in Bruce, he'll---"

"If I still had faith in Bruce, I wouldn't have left."

They were both quiet for awhile.

Just as she thought he had fallen asleep once again, Dick spoke.

"Why did you do it, Barbara?"

"Why did I do what?"

"Finally leave, after all this time?"

She sat back against the wall, trying to figure out how to answer.

"Don't you think we have more important issues right now?" she finally asked.

"No, not really. This could be it for us. The end of the line."

"Don't say that."

"I'm a realist, Babs. You should be one by now, too. Being around Bruce tends to make that happen to people."

"Why do you hate him so much, Dick?"

Silence.

She was about to ask him again when his voice drifted quietly to her.

"I don't hate him. I---" he swallowed hard, "I guess I just pity him. If that makes any sense."

_It does._

"I do, too, sometimes," she admitted.

"Is that why you stayed with him when I quit?"

_I really don't want to go there, Boy Wonder. _"Yes," she said aloud.

_But that wasn't the only reason._

Dick sighed. "That's good."

"Why is that good?" she blurted out before she could stop herself.

Dick closed his eyes and smiled tightly, as another surge of pain passed through him.

"I thought for awhile that maybe you had a thing for him."

He opened his eyes and stared at her, "Sounds crazy, huh?"

Barbara blushed, thankful that the darkness would keep him from noticing.

"It sure does," she lied. _Of course, I didn't realize that until about a month ago._

More silence.

She could hear his breathing. While it was steady most of the time, occasionally it would hitch, and Dick would start to cough again. She could tell he was beginning to fade away.

_I've got to get us out of here before he . . ._

She refused to complete the thought.

"It hurt, you know." He whispered suddenly.

"What did?" Maybe it she kept him talking, it would keep him conscious.

"When you left me."

"I don't remember it happening that way."

"Fine. When _I_ left," a little anger entered his voice.

"How about, when we went our separate ways?" she teased.

She was rewarded with the barest hint of a smile.

Dick closed his eyes again, breathing uneasily.

"I'm not trying to assign blame, Babs. I just want to come clean before. . . .well, before it's too late."

"Please don't talk like that, Dick. It isn't like you to give up."

"Always the optimist. Must be because you didn't lose your parents."

"I lost my mom."

"I'm sorry, Babs," he said honestly, "I sometimes forget. You hardly ever talk about her."

"I was very young when it happened. As I get older, it gets harder to remember her. Besides, it's not like she was murdered. I can't imagine having to go through something like that. It's no wonder Bruce is the way he is."

"I'm not going to end up like him," Dick said as forcefully as he could. He said it again, as if to convince himself. "I'm not."

"No one's saying you will, Dick."

"But they all expect it, Babs. Hey, look its Nightwing! Batman Junior! One of these days he's going to take over the mantle. Probably move back into the Manor."

"Come on, Dick, some of that is just in your mind."

Nightwing was quiet once again. That last outburst seems to have taken most of his flagging strength.

Barbara reached out to gently stroke his cheek. 'Are you okay?"

"Why didn't you come with me, Barbara?"

His voice was full of pain, only this time its root was emotional.

Now it was her turn to close her eyes and sigh.

"It's complicated, Dick. And it's been over two years. Can't you just let it go?"

"You don't understand," his voice was getting quieter, and she had to strain to hear it, "It ruined everything."

He was muttering now, more to himself than to her.

"I had already bought it. I was waiting for---I was waiting until the time was . . ."

He mouthed a few more words and then his head slumped forward.

"Dick! Dick, wake up!" She gently pulled him towards her, until his head was in her lap. She felt his forehead.

It was cold and clammy.

She checked his pulse.

Irregular and getting weaker.

He mumbled something.

She leaned down. Her hair brushed lightly against his face.

"Please, Dick, you have to fight. Stay with me."

He mumbled again, this time she made out a few words.

". . . the ring. I never gave you the . . ."

Nightwing went unconscious.

Barbara Gordan wondered if he would ever wake up again.


	8. Rescue

The lights were her first warning that they were coming.

Barbara gently set Dick's head down using her cape and cowl as a makeshift pillow. He was barely breathing now and his skin had a sickly pallor. His lips were caked with dried blood from his internal injuries. She didn't know how much longer he had, but she could tell he was at the end of his strength. Anything past a few more hours would be a miracle.

_--the ring. I never gave you the—_

His words continued to rattle around in her memory as she stroked his hair one last time before she stood up and faced the entrance of the cell. The force field went transparent once again and she saw four heavily armed Thanagarians staring at her through the irregular bars.

Their apparent leader hit a panel out of her view and the bars began to retract into the floor and ceiling. Barbara took a couple steps forward, putting herself between them and Dick.

She steeled herself for whatever was to come next.

_--Why didn't you come with me. Barbara?--_

The entrance way was completely clear now. The Hawk warriors moved carefully towards her, the foremost two brandishing maces, while the other two hung back a bit with their energy rifles trained on her.

"Hands over your head, Terran," their leader ordered.

"Why?" She assumed a combat stance, adrenalin washing away her weariness.

"That is not your concern. Obey or die."

As much as she was willing to risk dodging the energy blasts, Barbara realized she couldn't allow a stray beam to hit Dick.

--_It ruined everything--_

She stepped to one side, putting her hands behind her head. Now that Dick was no longer in the direct line of fire she could—

The entire room shuddered.

Everyone was knocked off their feet.

Batgirl, already tensed for action, recovered first and was on top of the closest soldier before he could even turn to look at her.

A savage blow to the throat left the winged warrior gagging as she ripped the mace from his grasp and swung with all her strength at the nearest rifle wielder. His head nearly came off with her strike; only his helmet saved his life. As it was his jaw was broken, and the alien crumpled to the floor out cold.

By now, her two remaining foes had recovered. Their leader trained his weapon on her, while the other one charged, mace swinging downward in a murderous arc.

Batgirl pitched the mace at the leader, her aim perfected by years of Batarang practice. The weapon smashed into the energy rifle just as it fired. The backfire ripped through the Thanagarian, throwing him backward into the hall.

She could not avoid the mace, however. The weapon connected solidly on her left, dislocating her shoulder. She screamed in agony and rage.

_--I was waiting until the time was--_

Barbara punched the Hawk man in the face. He staggered slightly.

She brought a leg straight up, kicking him right under the chin. He head snapped back and he crumpled. She allowed herself the pleasure of a couple kicks to the ribs before she was satisfied he wasn't getting back up.

The whole place shook again and the lights flickered.

Gasping in pain, she began to make her way over to Dick.

The first Thanagarian she had attacked tackled her before she could reach him.

She hit the floor hard and tried to scrabble away.

The Hawk warrior's fist disappeared into her gut and her insides turned to jelly.

Barbara kicked desperately, but could not hit a vital area.

_--the ring. I never gave you—_

The man was now on top of her, raining blows down upon her.

_I'm so sorry, Dick. I've failed you._

She stared upwards through blackened and swollen eyes as the Thanagarian reached over and picked up the fallen mace of his comrade. He held it with both hands and swung it back.

"Terran bitch! Die!"

"LEAVE HER ALONE!"

Something incredibly fast collided with the Hawk warrior, knocking him off of her and into the wall. He bounced off of it, hit the floor, and lay still.

Barbara Gordan stared groggily at her rescuer.

A young face, framed with long blond hair stared back, eyes full of concern and fear.

"Barbara? Are you okay?"

"K-Kara?"

Relief flooded Supergirl's face.

"How did you--"

"Don't worry about that now. Let's get you out of here." The Kryptonian lifted her effortlessly.

"No!" She began to struggle.

"Hold still. You're hurt!"

"You don't understand! Dick is going to die!"

"What? Dick?"

"Nightwing! Put me down, Kara! You have to help him first."

Reluctantly, Kara set Barbara on her feet and went over to Nightwing's prone form.

Barbara slumped against a wall, her injuries nearly making her black out.

"Check him with your X-ray vision," she gasped, "He's hurt bad."

Supergirl was quiet for a moment as she scanned him.

"My god, Barbara! You're not kidding."

"Is he still . . . ?"

"Don't worry," Kara picked him up gently, "We'll get him the help he needs. Now, come on. Follow me out."

"No," she said firmly, "Don't wait for me. I'll only slow you down. Get him to a hospital and then come back for me."

"But—"

"Kara!" Barbara shouted, "Please! Just do it!"

"Okay, but I'll be back for you."

"I hope so. 'Cause I'm about to drop," Barbara smiled wryly at her friend.

"Hang tight."

With that, Supergirl was gone.

_Please, God. Let her be in time._

Barbara staggered over to a corner and carefully lined up her left shoulder.

_Oh, this is going to HURT._

She shoved herself hard against the wall and screamed as her arm popped back into place.

-----

She woke up on the floor.

_I must have passed out._

Barbara got to her feet. She looked around warily. No sign of any new Thanagarians. The lights were dimmer, probably on emergency backup. Dust hung heavily in the air.

_Kara always did know how to make an entrance._

She put on her cowl, picked up the remaining energy rifle and made her way into the hallway.

The Thanagarian leader was still unconscious, and several other Hawk warriors were scattered throughout the corridor in various positions of defeat. There were a few people wandering around, many in a state of shock.

_Obviously, they rounded up anyone who was giving them trouble._

"Okay, people!" she shouted, "We're getting out of here. Those of you who think you can handle a weapon pick one up. The rest of you, follow me."

_Of course, it would be nice if I knew where I was going._

She led the freed prisoners down the corridor and followed the path of destruction Supergirl had made on her way in. Hopefully, it would lead to an exit.

_Knowing Kara, she probably went straight through the outer wall._

As several tense minutes passed with no sign of any Thanagarians, her thoughts turned to Dick once again. Now that their survival was probable, she began to consider just what he had revealed back in the cell.

_Was he really going to ask me to marry him? Why didn't he tell me? Why didn't he—_

The axe almost cut her in two.

Batgirl barely blocked it with the rifle. The blade bit deep into the weapon, ruining the device. Barbara let go and jumped back, sizing up her foe.

This time the Thanagarian was a woman. Unable to wrest free her weapon from the rifle, she tossed both to the ground and charged her, using her wings to add speed to her attack.

Batgirl allowed herself to be hit and carried upwards. She hooked her fingers around the bottom of the Hawk woman's helmet and ripped it off just as the two of them collided with the ceiling. Her back protested but Barbara ignored the pain, bringing both fists down hard on her opponent's ears, stunning her.

Both of them crashed back to the floor, but not before Batgirl managed to twist so that the Thanagarian took the brunt of the fall. A few of the humans following her made sure the alien wasn't going to be getting up any time soon.

A young man helped her to her feet.

"Are you okay?"

"I've have better days," _Now if only the hall would stop spinning._ "I just hope there aren't too many more of them."

"Don't worry about that, Batgirl," Supergirl called out.

Barbara turned and saw her friend hovering down the corridor, a few more Hawk warriors dangling from her hands.

"It's all over the news. The Justice League counterattacked."

Kara floated closer, tossing the Hawk warriors aside, "They destroyed the hyperspace bypass." She landed, smiling and placing her hands on Barbara's shoulders to steady her.

"We won. The war is over."

Batgirl grinned as the last of her adrenalin drained away and she slumped forward.

"And Nightwing?"

"He's going to make it."

Barbara began to cry, sobbing softly into her friend's shoulder.

Only this time, they were tears of joy.


	9. Girl Talk

"Hold still, please, Miss—ah, Miss . . . "

"Batgirl is fine, doctor. There's really no need to worry about me. I'm sure you have more important patients to deal with."

The young doctor smiled grimly and shined his penlight into each of her puffy eyes.

"You are my patient at the moment, Batgirl, and the sooner you let me finish checking you over, the sooner I can move on to those other patients you appear to be so concerned about."

Barbara sighed and tried not to flinch too much as the physician poked and prodded her various injuries. Normally, she would have tended to her own wounds or gone to see Leslie or Alfred, but Nightwing was in the ICU of this hospital and there was no way she would leave him alone. Not after all they had been through.

_So if an overzealous resident wants look me over so he can have a story to tell his friends, I'll just suck it up._

A few stitches, bandages, and pain-killers later, Barbara was finally left alone outside the Intensive Care Ward. Kara was helping to mop up the remaining Thanagarian holdouts in Bludhaven, but she had promised to come back and check on her just as soon as she could. According to the news, the Justice League had routed the invaders and the Hawk warriors were withdrawing from the planet as quickly as they had come.

The details were sketchy at the moment, but apparently the League had sacrificed its headquarters in order to destroy the Thanagarians' machine, thereby saving the Earth. Barbara was sure there was more to the story, and maybe someday Bruce would deign to tell her. She certainly hoped he was all right. With her utility belt gone she had no way to get in touch with him.

_Wait a minute, there's always the old fashioned way._

She walked a short distance down the hallway towards the payphones.

_Here's hoping Alfred won't mind a collect call._

_And I should probably call Daddy, too. He's probably worried sick._

-----

Nightwing was practically buried by the various machines, tubes, electrodes, and other medical equipment that surrounded his body. While he had yet to regain consciousness, the color had returned to his face and his life signs had stabilized.

Still, Barbara wouldn't be satisfied until he woke up.

The nurse had tried to shoo her out of the room, but she pulled a Bruce and glared at her until she took the hint and left. Barbara felt a little guilty as the nurse was just trying to do her job, but she right now she simply had to stay with him awhile, if only to convince herself he would indeed recover.

_--I never gave you the ring--_

Had he really said that?

"Oh, Dick," she whispered, hoping he could somehow hear her, "I wish you _had_ asked me. Perhaps then I wouldn't have wasted the past two years of my life pining after Bruce."

The door opened behind her.

"Look," Barbara said sharply, "I'm not going anywhere, so you can just—"

"Hey!" a familiar voice interrupted, "Is that anyway to speak to your own personal cavalry?"

"Kara!"

Barbara rose from her bedside vigil and embraced her friend fondly.

"Are you okay?" Kara said seriously, eyeing her various bandages.

"I'll be fine," Barbara turned back to look at Nightwing's prone form, "It's him I'm worried about."

"I got him here as quickly as I could," Kara pulled up another chair and sat down.

"I know you did. I'm not blaming you. It's just—"

"Of course you're not blaming me. You're too busy blaming yourself!"

Barbara sighed and slumped back into her seat, "I should have tried harder to get us out of there."

"Oh, come off it, Babs. These guys took the League down. There was no way you or Nightwing were getting out of there without some help."

"Well, they were able to escape."

"Last time I checked, _they_ had superpowers. You and Nightwing have to rely on skill and sheer guts."

Barbara smiled. _And a whole lot of dumb luck, too._

A new thought occurred to her.

"How did you find us, anyway?"

"Long story short, at some point before their counterattack, Batman asked my cousin to contact me to look for you guys. Kal told me you both were supposed to be somewhere in Bludhaven when he stopped by the farm real quick to see how we were doing. I had to go through a lot of ships before I got the right one, but eventually I hit the jackpot."

"Just in the nick of time, too," Barbara agreed, "Things were about to get ugly."

They sat in companionable silence for a while, listening to the steady cadence of the respirator and other medical equipment.

"You know," Kara said slowly, a hint of mischief in her voice, "I was kind of surprised to hear you had moved to Bludhaven. I thought you told me you were a Gotham girl through and though?"

"I am! I mean, I was," Barbara sighed, "It's kind of complicated."

"Well, I'm not going any where anytime soon."

Barbara tilted her head back and stared silently at the ceiling.

Kara tapped her playfully on the shoulder, "Come on! 'Fess up!"

"I really don't want to talk about it."

"Don't be like that, Barbara. Don't bottle things up like Batman does."

Barbara had to admit Kara did have a point.

"Besides," Supergirl said, grinning, "It will help pass the time."

"Okay, okay. You win." Barbara stood up and walked over to a window. She peeked behind the blinds. For the first time in days, there was no sign of Thanagarians or their vessels.

"It all started when I got back from grad school . . . "

-----

Supergirl stared at her, mouth agape and eyes bulging. Her face was so comical that it took quite a bit of willpower for Barbara not to burst out laughing.

"He was going to propose!"

"That's what it sounded like to me. A lot was going on at the time."

"And now you're waiting for him to wake up so you can talk about it?"

Barbara nodded, absently watching the heart monitor track Dick's pulse.

"That is SO romantic!" Kara clapped her hands together in glee.

Times like this reminded Barbara that her friend was still a few years younger.

"What are you going to say?" Supergirl asked, blue eyes gleaming.

Barbara didn't know how to answer. She hadn't figured that out for herself yet.

"I don't know, Kara. I'm still trying to get over Bruce—"

"Oh, yuck! I don't think I'll ever understand what you see in him. I think Darkseid has more emotion than Batman." She crinkled her nose, "Besides, he's so old!"

"You're only saying that because you don't know him like I do," Barbara got up and stretched. She was beginning to feel tired despite herself. "Bruce has a . . . nobility that is very rare. After all he's been through. . . after what happened to his parents and to some of his friends like Harvey Dent, it's amazing that he found the strength to carry on, much less do the incredible things he does as Batman."

She turned to look at Kara, "It's no wonder he keeps those he loves at a distance. He doesn't want any more heartbreak. It's a defense mechanism."

"But it's self-destructive, Barbara. Can he ever love you the way you want to be loved? The way you deserve to be loved?"

"I don't know," she said quietly.

The mood turned somber. Kara watched her friend begin to withdraw within herself again and decided to lighten the mood.

"Come on," she grabbed Batgirl firmly by the shoulder and began to lead her out of the room, "Even super-heroes need to eat. Let's go to the cafeteria. My treat."

Barbara was about to protest, but at the mention of food, her stomach growled.

"Okay."

-----

"And so, Pa's like, 'Doesn't that costume show a little too much skin, young lady?'"

"Daddy's the same way," Barbara imitated James Gordan's lower tone, "Barbara, surely you're not planning on going out in that, are you?" They both laughed, "And I'm hearing this even though I moved out years ago."

The conversation paused as they sat down at the table and began to unwrap their meal.

"I wonder how they managed to break free?" Supergirl mused as she picked the olives out of her salad and patently ignored the dozen or so employees gawking at them from a respectful distance. When they had first entered, they were nearly mobbed, but Kara had done this cool trick with her eyes where she made them flash red without actually releasing her heat vision, and they were quickly left alone.

Kara had paid since Barbara's emergency cash and credit cards were lost when the Thanagarians had taken her utility belt, and the two super heroines found themselves a booth in a relatively isolated corner. The food wasn't great, but it was infinitely better than what she had had in the cell.

"Superman didn't tell you?" Barbara was currently working her way through a BLT.

"He didn't have a lot of time. He said he had to get back right away."

"I know a little bit from Alfred," she took a drink of her cola and continued, "Apparently they went to ground after the escape and they all ended up back at the Manor eventually."

"No way!" Satisfied that the last of the offending olives had been removed from the salad, Kara began to dig in with gusto, "That means the secret is out! I can't believe Batman would do that."

Batgirl stared absently across the room. More people were coming in now, most of them not even bothering to order food. Today's special was a feast for the eyes rather than the stomach. "I can. Bruce was always willing to do what he had to do to get the job done."

"You know," Kara turned around briefly to flash her eyes again. Immediately, a couple adventurous lab technicians backed off a few tables and sat down nervously, "It not just his secret that's out there. Anyone with half a brain on the League could probably deduce Dick's and eventually yours." She crunched nosily on a cucumber slice and continued, mouth still filled with food, "'Cept maybe Flash. Kal says he's a little slow on the uptake."

Batgirl laughed, "Fast on his feet, but slow in the head, huh? Bruce never told me much, but I did get the impression Flash drives him nuts."

"I can believe it. That guy even managed to get under Kal's skin the first time they met, and trust me, it takes _a lot_ to do that." Kara downed her coke in one swig.

"What does Kal think of Wonder Woman?" Barbara said casually, poking around her plate of fries.

"Oh, he absolutely adores her!" Kara began attacking her cookies, "It's like she can do no wrong. I bet if he wasn't so hung up on Lois, she'd be the ideal woman for him. I swear, sometimes he gets this goofy grin when he talks about her."

"Really?" her heart began to beat a little faster, "Do you think maybe the feeling's mutual?"

"I don't know. Kal's kind of clueless about things like that," Kara stared down at her empty plate and looked longingly at Barbara's, "Hey, can I have some of your fries?"

"Sure," she pushed her tray towards the center of the table, "I think they'd be perfect for each other, don't you?"

Kara happily munched several fries before answering, "Maybe . . . but she seems to spend more time with Batman than Superman."

It took Supergirl a few more seconds before she realized the effect her words had had on her friend, "Oh, Babs! I'm sorry. I'm _such_ an idiot."

Barbara smiled sadly in agreement.

"It's okay, Kara," she said honestly, "You're only confirming what I already know in my heart." She shoved her tray all the way over to Supergirl, "Here, I've lost my appetite."

They spent the next several minutes in uncomfortable silence.

The cafeteria was getting noisier.

Annoyed, Kara flew up and turned, eyes blazing.

"Don't you people have better things to do?"

She quickly realized the commotion wasn't about them.

Many of the people were leaving, some pushing and shoving.

She used her super hearing as Barbara also stood up, ready for action.

A babble of voices reached her from throughout the hospital.

"No way!" "It is really him?" "No, it can't be!" "It is!" "Look, up in the sky!" "Superman!" "It's Superman!" "Who's he carrying?" "Superman!" "Cool!" "Way to go, Man of Steel!" "You kicked those bird guys' ass!" "He's carrying somebody." "Really? Who?"

Kara listened for a few more seconds and then turned to Barbara.

"What is it?" Batgirl asked.

"My cousin's here. And he brought Batman with him."

Barbara stopped in her tracks.

"Come on," Kara said gently, floating back down to the floor, "We better go meet them."


	10. Reunions

"Superman!"

The Man of Steel barely had time to turn towards the joyful voice before Kara launched herself at her cousin. He managed to embrace the young woman, but not before both of them nearly went through a wall.

"I'm so happy you're okay!" Supergirl hugged the older man tightly, burying herself in the familiar red and yellow emblem on his chest.

"Er, it's good to see you, too, Supergirl," Superman replied, looking a bit embarrassed.

Barbara wasn't fooled. Sure, Kara sometimes let her feelings get the better of her, but the affection between the two of them was strong. Superman was just as glad to know his cousin was all right, and her detective's eye noticed he didn't seem to be in any hurry to let the young girl go. In fact, the relief on his face was palpable.

Batgirl felt a pang of envy. _Bruce would never allow himself to be so free with _his_ emotions._

_Speaking of whom . . ._

"Um, sorry to break up this touching reunion, but where is Batman?"

The two Kryptonians parted, and Superman approached with his hand out.

"Hello, Batgirl. It's nice to see you again."

Barbara shook his hand, suddenly nervous. Although she and Kara were good friends, she had only met Superman a few times, mostly in passing and always with Batman.

"N-nice to see you, too, sir," she stammered.

_Get it together, Barbara. _

"No need to be so formal, Batgirl," he stared at her for a moment, "Looks like you've had a rough time of it."

"Oh, this?" she looked down at her bruises and bandages, "Nothing a few days rest won't cure. Just trying to do my part while you and the League take down the heavy hitters."

"I'm sorry it took us so long to get things under control," Superman said earnestly, "but believe me when I say that the Thanagarians won't be back to bother Earth ever again."

'That's great! I knew you guys would pull through!"

_Geeze, Babs, why don't you ask for an autograph while you're at it. Moron._

"Anyway," she continued, self-consciously running a hand through her hair and looking around, "did you see where Batman went? I really should report in." _And stop babbling in front of you before you think I'm a total idiot._

"He said he was going to check on Nightwing's condition."

"Okay. Well, if you'll excuse me."

Kara piped up, "Say hi to Batman for me!"

Barbara shot her a dirty look.

-----

Despite the florescent overhead lighting, Batman had still managed to find a dark corner for his bedside vigil. The cape was drawn around his body, so that only his cowl and ever-present impassive visage could be seen. He was as still and silent as the stone gargoyles he was so fond of perching on. He did not react when she paused in the doorway.

Batgirl entered Nightwing's room and stood by the foot of the bed, waiting.

She knew what was coming and was not disappointed when the Dark Knight finally spoke.

"How did this happen, Batgirl?"

Barbara swallowed once and spoke simply, "We were ambushed."

His head turned slightly towards her, "And?"

"_And_ there were a lot of them. Maybe twenty or thirty. We were both overwhelmed."

"I trained you better than that."

_Not all of us have the Justice League backing us up, jerk._

"Sorry," she said instead, "some of us are merely human."

Batman's reaction was unexpected.

"He once said that to me," he said quietly. He slumped a bit and looked down at Nightwing, "In fact, he said a lot of things I probably should have paid more attention to." Although he was still wearing the costume, a transformation had occurred.

She was no longer trading barbs with Batman.

She was talking to Bruce.

Barbara walked around the bed and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"He's going to be okay. Kara got him here in time."

Bruce turned to look at her, taking in her injuries.

"Are you . . . ?"

"I'll live," she said breezily, grinning wryly, "Although Bludhaven may have to wait a few more weeks for Batgirl's proper introduction to the masses."

"That's good. We'll be needing you."

"We?" Barbara was confused, "Did Robin come back from the Titans?"

Bruce shook his head, absently pulling Dick's sheet a little higher over his body.

"We are going to rebuild the Watchtower and the League. And when we do, I need you to be ready."

"What?" _What is he talking about? Ready for what?_

"We were caught unprepared for this invasion," Bruce's voice darkened as his Dark Knight persona returned, "Even though we set up the Justice League to defend the Earth from precisely this type of threat."

He began to input commands into his utility belt computer.

"I think you're being a bit hard on yourself," she said, trying to comfort him, "You couldn't have known Hawkgirl was going to turn traitor. She had everybody fooled."

"I should have known," he backed away from her and began to head for the exit, "It's my job."

"Where are you going? You just got here!"

"The Batwing will be here in an hour. Transfer Dick to the plane. I'll have Leslie waiting in the Cave."

"The nurses said not to move him!"

"It's too risky having Nightwing convalescing in a public hospital. He's made a lot of enemies since he set up shop in Bludhaven."

"Damn it, Bruce!" she swore, striding after him, "Not everything is about the damn Mission! Do you really think some mob boss is going to attempt to assassinate Dick when there's just been a global alien invasion? Come on!"

Batman stopped in the doorway and fixed her with a familiar glare.

"Just do it, Batgirl. I have League business to attend to."

With a quick sweep of his cape, he left.

-----

"Thank you, Alfred." Barbara accepted the tea.

"I do wish you'd reconsider, Mistress Barbara. There are eight guest rooms in the Manor, all of which containing beds much more comfortable than a cot."

They were in the medical bay within the Cave. Despite her reservations, the transfer from Bludhaven had gone flawlessly. Dick was now out of uniform and resting comfortably, attended by the most advanced medical equipment Waynetech could provide. Leslie had left only a few hours ago, saying she felt optimistic he would fully recover within a few months and could wake up at any time.

Barbara was determined to be there when he did, thus creating a need for makeshift sleeping arrangements.

"That's okay, Alfred. Even a cot will be heaven compared to what we've been through the last couple days."

"As you wish," the butler sniffed, removing her dinner tray, "But I'll have you know, even Master Bruce doesn't sleep down _here_."

Barbara leaned back in her chair and stared at the various stalactites high above on the cavern's ceiling. Her eyes then wandered over the various destroyed trophies. Even the giant penny had been knocked over.

_That must have been some battle yesterday._

"Please, Alfred. It's just something I have to do."

"Of course, Madam," Alfred said gently, "Just be sure to use the blankets. These caverns can be drafty under the best of circumstances."

She smiled at his concern, sipping the tea.

The butler sighed as he looked out at the cave. "It will take weeks to get everything back in order, and, unlike the damage upstairs, I can't call in a cleanup crew."

"I will admit, however," he continued, "That it is nice to have so many people back in the house. I just wish the circumstances were less grave." Alfred made he way to the elevator. At his age, he had decided the medical bay was simply too many steps away from the clock entrance.

"How's it going up there?" Barbara asked, setting down the tea and picking up a crumpet.

"Not well, I'm afraid," the Englishman pushed a button to open the doors and stepped in, "Master Bruce had me summon Hawkgirl into the meeting room just before I came down here."

"How's she holding up?"

The butler deftly placed a hand on the doorframe to prevent them from closing before responding, "I'd say she appears fairly resigned to whatever they decide to do."

"What do you think of her? Is she a traitor like they say?"

Alfred didn't hestitate. "I think she is a brave person who did the best she could in a truly tragic situation." With that, he released the door and disappeared.

_Now why does that sound so familiar?_

She looked down at Dick, brushing a stray cowlick back into place.

"Kind of like that time on the roof with the Joker, huh, Dick? Either choice I made was going to hurt someone I loved."

The young man made no reply.

-----

A few hours later, Barbara decided to call it a day. She had been wearing her costume all this time what with the League upstairs, but ultimately she decided if Bruce trusted them, then she could, too. She stripped it off like a snake molting its skin and stared at it.

_Bloodstains, energy burns, rips, sweat, and God knows what else._

She waded it up and tossed it aside.

_At least I have a spare here in the Cave._

One blissful thirty minute shower later, and Barbara felt better than she had in days.

_Good thing I hounded Bruce to install a bathroom in the Cave a few years ago._

Wrapped in one of Bruce's over-sized robes, she put her hair up in a towel, and padded back out to check on Dick. The cool stone felt good on her bare feet. Alfred had provided sleepwear for her, but she had left it out by the cot. She'd put it on quickly and---

She wasn't alone.

"I'm sorry," Wonder Woman said, "I didn't realize anyone else was down here."

The Amazon was standing by the mainframe, looking perfect as usual.

"Can I help you with something?" Barbara said bluntly. She was embarrassed, annoyed, and self-conscious all at the same time.

_I can't believe Bruce is letting her wander anywhere she wants._

"I didn't mean to disturb you. I just came down here to clean up a bit."

"Pardon me?"

"The cave," Wonder Woman gestured, "I'm afraid we made a bit of a mess during the battle yesterday. I thought I'd try to straighten it up."

Barbara snatched the night clothes from the nearby cot and began to put them on under the robe, "Does Batman know you're down here?"

"No. Bruce is busy talking to J'onn about the new technology they want to install in the next Watchtower." The Amazon walked over to the knocked over penny and hefted it effortlessly, "Besides, I knew he wouldn't ask for help."

_Huh. She catches on fast._

"Well, if you don't mind, I was just planning on turning in."

Placing the penny carefully in its base, Wonder Woman rotated it until the Lincoln head was right side up, "Of course. Bruce had mentioned you had been through a lot lately."

_Boy, she just _loves_ using his first name, doesn't she?_

Barbara took a deep breath, finished dressing and walked over to Nightwing's bed.

_Get a grip, Barbara. She's just being thoughtful._

Somehow knowing that Wonder Woman was the only member of the League who had bothered to come down to clean up made Barbara feel even worse.

_Surely, she has some flaws? Feet of clay, maybe?_

"How is he?" Wonder Woman approached the medical bay, but kept a respectful distance. "Bruce wouldn't tell me much."

_Join the club._

"He'll make it," she said, simply, just wanting the Amazon to take the hint and leave, "But he needs his rest." To help make her point, Barbara abruptly turned off the bay's lights and walked over to her cot.

Wonder Woman got the message and began to float slowly upwards.

"I hope you both recover completely," She arced gracefully towards the clock entrance, "I'll make sure no one else disturbs you."

The Amazon disappeared through the secret entrance, and Barbara was left alone.

She sighed.

_The sooner I get out of here, the better._

Author's Note: Nice to see some reviews from new people. Not that I don't appreciate those from the usual suspects. ;-) I did notice some concerns in the last set of reviews and I just want to put them to rest. A Wonder Woman/Superman pairing is mostly wish fulfillment on Barbara's part. While I don't hate the idea as much as some of you appear to, I don't plan on incorporating it into my plot. This is, and will continue to be, Barbara's story.


	11. Midnight at the Manor

The moon shined down upon the darkened hulk that was Wayne Manor. Crouched on top of a towering precipice overlooking crashing waves below like some tense bird of prey, the edifice was nearly as foreboding as the urban legend that called it home. Cracked masonry, massive trees, and thick panes of stained glass belied the age of the building, home to the Wayne family for almost as long as Gotham City had been in existence.

The sprawling, gothic mansion reeked of ancient history, dour tradition, and some lost golden age of the city on which it kept solemn vigil, year after year, century after century. Its yawning windows and creaking halls had seen much through the relentless march of its existence. Its broad stairways and giant portals had witnessed many extraordinary events since that tragic night two decades ago when a devastated boy in a suddenly too large and too empty home made a solemn oath. That oath, like a stone cast in a mirror smooth pond, rippled ever outward through time and space, until the entire city had been consumed.

But the ripples did not stop at that nearby shore.

Gradually, they continued spreading. Traversing counties, states, and nations. Eventually, they reached across the yawning gulf of the void to touch other stars, other civilizations. Impossibly, the ripples somehow stretched backward into the past and expanded forward into the future. The ripples touched other dimensions and other realities.

The original ripple also birthed other ripples, which crisscrossed each other continuously, sometimes spreading away for a time, only to collide and recombine again. Ever flowing, ever strong, ever expanding. It seemed as though the oath would ripple through reality forever.

But tonight, the ripples were quiet. The pond was still.

Even oaths can be forgotten, if only for a few hours in the dead of night.

-----

"Batman," the Martian said in his steady baritone voice, "Perhaps we've done enough for one day."

"We've barely begun, J'onn," the Dark Knight replied, staring at WayneTech's latest R and D budget. He had taken the cowl off around midnight, but he was still wearing the costume. He paused to sip some of the coffee Alfred had left for them, grimacing once he realized the liquid had probably reached room temperature over an hour ago.

"It's not going to be as easy to divert the funds for the new Watchtower this time around," he continued, setting down the cup, "The economy's not as strong, and WayneTech's going to have to write off a lot of the assets the Thanagarians commandeered to build their bypass system."

"Especially since you blew it all up," Woman Woman interjected, staring out at the ocean through the large bay windows that lined the eastern wall of the conference room. While Diana had originally decided she wouldn't be able to sleep after the outcome of Hawkgirl's tribunal earlier, the emotional, mental, and physical fatigue of the past several days had finally caught up with her. She stifled a yawn and wandered back to the large oak table where her comrades had begun the long, arduous process of rebuilding the League.

"I don't recall you coming up with another alternative, Princess."

Wonder Woman sighed. Maybe she should have taken Wally up on his offer to have her crash at his place. _Or I could have stayed with Kal's parents in Kansas. Supergirl seems nice._

Unlike the others, neither J'onn nor herself had a home outside of the Watchtower. Oh, Diana supposed she could have gone back to Themiscrya and thrown herself upon the mercy of her mother, but that route just wasn't all that appealing to her. Especially when Bruce had offered to put both of them up, at least until other arrangements could be made.

"Well, I think I'm going to bed," she declared, yawning openly this time. _I haven't been up this late . . . or is it this early?. . . since the last time I was out with Audrey._

"Good night, Diana," J'onn said politely, "It has indeed been a long and difficult day."

"Don't stay up too late, J'onn."

She turned to look at Bruce, waiting for him to acknowledge her departure.

He was staring at some more paperwork and bringing up financial records on a laptop.

"J'onn," Bruce said absently, "I think I might be able to pull it off. Lucius won't be happy, but it's not like I haven't dealt with that before. It'll probably take several months to shift things around properly---"

The slamming door brought his musings to an abrupt halt.

He exchanged glances with the Martian Manhunter.

J'onn met his gaze impassively.

"Was it something I said?"

Now it was the alien's turn to sigh.

-----

"Why that insufferable, thoughtless, pig-headed IDIOT!"

She was about to slam her second door of the evening, but thought better of it when she realized Alfred would probably end up having to repair it himself.

_Maybe I should go downstairs and put some dents in the Batmobile. I bet THAT would get his attention._

Diana closed her guestroom door firmly, latched it, and turned off the lights. She stripped out of her fighting gear and collapsed on the king-sized bed.

Immediately, she felt something soft and silky underneath her. The Amazon reached underneath and pulled out some kind of nightgown, no doubt left there by Alfred.

She slipped it over her head and shoulders and pulled it down over her body.

It was a little snug on her, but still very comfortable.

While she appreciated the clothing, she couldn't ignore the tiny voice inside her head that kept wondering whose lingerie this had been in the first place.

The voice also wondered if Bruce and Batgirl's partnership was strictly professional.

_That _would_ explain some of the tension I sense from her whenever we meet._

Perhaps she would discuss with the young woman tomorrow. . .

-----

"Bruce, let's get some rest."

"I'm okay," Batman insisted, looking up from the laptop and rubbing his eyes, "I just need to brew a fresh pot of coffee. Besides, in the aftermath of the invasion, there's been a lot of looting in Gotham. I should have enough time for a quick patrol before I set up a meeting with Lucius in the morning."

J'onn moved over to his friend and pointed at the screen, "You're making mistakes, Bruce. Look at this calculation."

The man stared at the screen for several seconds.

Finally, he reached out and closed the computer.

"You're right, of course. We can't afford to be sloppy."

Batman stood up and stretched, allowing a single yawn to escape. For some reason, being around J'onn put him at ease. There was no need for the usual pretenses he constructed with the other Leaguers. With a telepath, such efforts were both pointless and unnecessary.

"I trust your accommodations are satisfactory, J'onn?"

"They are adequate from my needs, Bruce. Try and get some sleep. The foundation for the next incarnation of the Justice League depends greatly on you."

With that, the Martian went transparent and floated upwards through the ceiling.

For about the hundredth time, Batman considered how useful J'onn's abilities would be for his own Mission. Then he turned out the lights in the conference room and made his way towards a very familiar grandfather clock.

There was just one more thing he had to do before sleep could be allowed to take him.

-----

He stole down the stairs as silent as a shadow.

The cave was cold tonight and empty.

The bats were gone. His use of them earlier must have disturbed their natural cycle.

He regretted it now, but at the time he had merely done what had been necessary.

As always.

The medical bay was dimly lit by the glow of the nearby mainframe.

In the near darkness, he could clearly observe the readouts on the diagnostic equipment surrounding Nightwing. His vital signs were getting stronger.

He paused for a long time, simply watching the rhythm of Dick's breathing.

He couldn't help but notice how mature the face of his ward had become. There was almost no trace of the 13 year old boy he had taken in all those years ago.

He reached out and grasped one hand firmly.

"I'm sorry, Dick. I should have prepared you better."

The words faded quickly into the gloom of the cave.

He wanted to say more. He wanted to tear down the emotional barriers that had been erected between the two of them. He wanted Dick to understand that he was the closest thing he would ever have to a son.

But, in the end, he uttered nothing further.

Eventually, he left Dick and walked over to Barbara's sleeping form.

The young woman was deeply embraced by the slumber of pure exhaustion.

He gently traced a finger over one of her many bandages and pulled her blankets a little higher up on her body.

Once again, regrets began to surface in his mind.

The last time she had been in the Cave with him, things had not gone well.

Yet another relationship destroyed by his hands.

Was this to be his fate? To drive those he cared about away until he was utterly alone in a darkness of his own making?

Or was this some kind of sick, self-imposed punishment? Did he loathe himself so much that he subconsciously ruined any chance he had at happiness or even mere normalcy?

Perhaps it didn't have to be this way. Perhaps the Mission didn't have to be Everything.

He cupped Barbara's chin tenderly and brushed her lips with his own.

"Perhaps . . . " he whispered.

Barbara muttered something, slowly opened her eyes, and sat up.

The cave was empty.

She looked over at the medical bay to confirm Nightwing was still unconscious, buried herself back under her covers, and soon fell back to sleep.

He watched her from the nearby shadows awhile longer.

Then, like a wraith, he left.


	12. Back in Action

"Bruce, what you are asking us to do would be extremely irresponsible both to our employees and our stockholders!"

There was a murmur of agreement up and down the massive oak conference table. Division leaders and board members nodded and exchanged looks with each other, as branch managers present via satellite feed from as far away as Tokyo and Rome assented with Lucius Fox. Reading body language and viewing expressions, the CEO of WayneTech quickly realized the task at hand would be even more difficult than he had anticipated.

"Gentlemen, I realize that the next quarter, indeed, the next fiscal year will be difficult for our company. However, we must take advantage of the unique opportunity the aftermath of the Thanagarian Invasion presents us . . ."

As he continued his presentation, he found his mind wandering yet again.

Gotham was calling him. It had been too long since he had gone on patrol.

Unfortunately, if he didn't get things squared away with WayneTech immediately, it would be impossible to accomplish the reincarnation of the League. That had to be his priority right now. Yet, he couldn't let his city suffer.

As much as he loathed the idea, Bruce realized that he had to ask for help.

---

Barbara awoke to the pleasant aroma of fresh coffee. A silver serving tray had been placed on the table next to her cot, holding strawberries, eggs, bacon, and various baked goods, all arranged neatly beside a full pot of the hot beverage and the morning's newspaper.

_A girl could get used to this._

Fifteen minutes later, the tray was mostly empty and she had checked on Dick, pleased to see his vitals continued to be strong. Now, if only he'd wake up.

Filled with nervous energy, she decided to use the training equipment, testing to see how well her body had recovered. A few of the more complex moves on the uneven bars made her muscles protest, but otherwise her recent wounds didn't appear to be slowing her down much.

She was half way through a weight lifting session when she had a visitor.

Barbara had seen pictures of the Martian Manhunter both in the paper and on Bruce's various League files, but she had never been formally introduced to the alien. Despite all of her years in the Business, extra-terrestrials were hardly a run of the mill occurrence. Especially when they were as creepy looking as the green humanoid now standing in front of her.

"I am sorry to disturb you, Batgirl."

"Oh, that's okay, uh, Mr. Manhunter," Barbara stood up awkwardly from the bench press she had been working on, smiling nervously.

_Isn't this the one that can read minds?_

"Please, Batgirl, call me J'onn. There is no need to be so formal."

"John, huh? Okay, I can handle that," she approached the alien calmly and extended her hand, hoping he couldn't tell her nonchalance was merely an act, "You might as well call me Barbara. You know, what with the mind reading and all."

J'onn tilted his head in askance as he took her hand.

Barbara blushed slightly. "I mean, you know. Secret identities are kind of pointless when someone can just pop in your head and snoop around."

The Martian stiffened. "I would never read an ally's mind without permission."

"Oh, I'm sorry! I wasn't accusing you! I just figured it was some kind of automatic thing you did." _Get it together, Babs! What it is about League members that just seems to make your brain shut down?_

"It is not, I assure you." Seeing how flustered she was becoming the alien continued, "Do not worry. I take no offense. Your experience with telepaths must be rather limited."

"That's certainly true. You're the first one I've ever met."

An awkward silence settled in between them.

Finally, J'onn broke it.

"Batman has contacted me. The meeting with the executives of WayneTech isn't going as well as he had hoped. It's going to require him to stay with the board well into the night and probably tomorrow. He's asked me to patrol Gotham for the next few days."

"Bruce asked for help?"

She couldn't believe it.

"Yes, and my talents are well-suited to the task at hand."

Right before her eyes, the Martian's body began to shift and change color. Within a few heartbeats, the green form of J'onn disappeared only to be replaced with a perfect duplicate of Batman. If she hadn't seen the change with her own eyes, she would have sworn it was Bruce in full costume standing beside her.

"The problem is, I am unfamiliar with Gotham. If I am to successfully fulfill Batman's duties, I need to know my way around."

"That makes sense."

"I would wondering if you would join me on patrol."

"Oh." Barbara paused, wondering if she had heard this last part correctly. "Let me get this straight. You're asking me to show you around Gotham while you impersonate Batman?"

"Of course. It is the logical thing to do, given the circumstances."

"Um, okay," she smiled, walking quickly over to one of the storage lockers that should contain a spare costume, "Just give me a minute to change."

"Excellent. I shall inform Alfred that we will be leaving the Manor."

"Uh, just one more thing, John."

The fake Batman paused, hovering a couple feet above the cave floor.

"Yes?"

Barbara carefully considered how to phrase her question before she replied.

"Will Wonder Woman be joining us?"

"No," J'onn answered simply. "She left earlier this morning to help Superman with a natural disaster in South America. She probably will not be back until this evening."

With that the Martian reverted to his natural form, rose into the air, and passed through the ceiling. Barbara watched him go in amazement.

_This is going to be interesting._

---

"Stay back! I'm warning you!"

The young man with the shaved head pointed the pistol at Batgirl, barrel of the gun shaking visibly. The last man standing of a gang that had numbered six mere moments ago, he looked like he was about to throw up. She knew even street punks like him could be dangerous when desperate and cornered.

"Why don't you put the gun down and give up?" Barbara said disarmingly, "There's no reason why this can't end peaceably." She casually placed a hand on her utility belt--_-Sure is nice to have access to one of these again---_and palmed a collapsible Batarang.

"Back off, bitch!" the gang member's eyes bulged wildly as he tried to steady his aim by gripping his weapon with both hands, "I'm getting out of here, and there's no way you're gonna stop me!" He began to retreat clumsily, nearing tripping over one of his fallen comrades.

Batgirl bid her time, looking for just the right moment to throw.

Suddenly, Batman rose up from the ground behind her quarry. The cape of the Dark Knight spread out and enveloped the man before he could so much as gasp. Scant seconds later, he emerged from Batman's embrace unconscious and quickly slumped to the ground.

Slightly annoyed, she put away the Batarang. "Um. I thought we were going to go easy on using the superpowers, John."

Batman shrugged. "I felt that with no remaining witnesses, expediency was the best option."

_Got to admit, his logic is sound. No wonder Bruce likes him so much._

"I suppose."

She finished securing the prisoners and used her com-link to alert Gotham's Finest.

_Bruce was right as usual. Lots of unsavory types out and about trying to take advantage of the post-invasion chaos._

She took out her Bat-grapple, took careful aim at a nearby rooftop, and fired. She glanced over at the Martian.

"Ready?"

"Of course."

The fake Batman reached out and fired his grapple in turn. Only close inspection would have revealed that the Bat-grapple had actually grown out of one of Batman's gauntlets, and that Batman was only pretending to use the rope to climb to the roof as he actually flew to the top under his own power.

Barbara had witnessed this ruse several times already this evening and it still unnerved her.

_And Bruce deals with this type of thing all the time. I wonder how long it took him to adjust?_

Most likely a lot faster than it would end up taking her.

---

Several hours later, they were in the Batmobile heading back to the Manor. J'onn had insisted that Barbara do the driving, creating the weird situation where she was behind the wheel while "Bruce" rode shotgun.

_Like this would ever happen for real._

"Was this a typical night for him?" the Martian asked, voice a perfect duplicate of Bruce.

"Well, actually, we got off a little easy."

"We engaged 23 criminals, prevented 15 violent crimes, saved seven people from an apartment fire, and discovered close to a million dollars worth of black market goods." The fake Batman stared at her incredulous, "That qualifies as getting off easy?"

"Well, sure," she shrugged, making the final turn out of town, "We didn't come across any of the freaks, for one thing."

"Freaks?"

"You know," she floored the accelerator, realizing this may be her only opportunity to put the vehicle through its paces without Bruce's eyes boring into her, "The Joker, Two-Face, Riddler, and so on. The Freaks. The costumed bad guys."

"Ah, I see."

They rode in silences for a few minutes as the vehicle exited Gotham proper and made its way down a dark country road. She glanced over at "Batman" and sighed.

"I am sorry if my presence makes you uncomfortable, Batgirl."

"Oh, no! It's not that," she made a quick turn onto an even more deserted road. "Well, actually . . . if you could revert back to your normal form, that would be cool. I don't think Bruce will mind now that we're out of the city and on our way back."

"Very well."

Seconds later, the Martian sat in the passenger seat.

"I'm sorry," she said earnestly, "It's just that I don't have a lot of experience with extra-terrestrials. But I'll get used to it, especially since I guess I'll be seeing a lot more of you and the rest of the League in the near future."

"So you plan to stay in Gotham, then?"

"For now, anyway. It looks like Bruce is going to need help since you guys will be trying to revamp the team. Besides, Nigthwing probably won't be up and around any time soon . . ."

She trailed off. This was the first time she had spent any significant amount of time away from Dick since that night when he came to her apartment.

It seemed like such a long time ago now.

--_I never gave you the ring--_

"You really care for him."

"What?"

"I said, you really care for Nightwing."

Batgirl glared at the alien.

"Do you---?"

"Of course not. I do not need to read someone's mind to know that spending nearly every waking moment at a person's bedside has significance."

Barbara's cheeks went red.

"I'm sorry, John. I should take you at your word about not prying into people's minds."

They were almost back to the Manor. She slowed the vehicle down and took a little known and very nondescript access road that would take them to the hidden cave entrance.

The rest of the trip was made in silence.

Five minutes later and they were exiting the vehicle as the huge turntable began to slowly rotate the Batmobile back into position.

"I will contact Batman and let him know how the patrol went." J'onn said as he took to the air heading up towards the Mansion. "It was a pleasure working with you today, Batgirl."

"Hey, you didn't do such a bad job yourself, big guy."

She removed the cowl and walked casually over to the mainframe.

_That actually went pretty well, all things considered. Once you get past the way he looks, John is actually a pretty nice guy. Professional, too. I wouldn't mind having him watching my back in a tight spot._

_Who knows? We might end up working together on a regular basis. Bruce wouldn't have asked him to fill in unless he thought things were going to be pretty hectic for a long---_

"Barbara?"

The voice was weak and soft, but in the still air of the Cave, it carried easily to her ears.

The sudden pounding of her heart drowned out all thoughts except one.

Dick was finally awake.


	13. Old Wounds

Barbara wasn't sure how long she stood there, powerful emotions holding her fast like some insect stuck in amber. Relief, anxiety, guilt, trepidation, and a dozen other feelings she could barely identify surged through her as she stared, not really seeing, at the medical bay shrouded in the darkness of the Cave.

_Could I have imagined it?_

"Babs?" the voice called out again softly, "Can you hear me?"

_Guess not._

Finally, she regained her composure and approached the bed quickly.

"Yes, I can hear you, Dick. Everything is fine."

She saw that he had his eyes closed while he spoke.

"I think the Batmobile woke me up. And then I heard your voice . . ."

He trailed off for a moment.

Barbara debated whether or not to call Alfred. _I should contact Bruce, too._

"So . . . I guess we won?"

Barbara smiled, "I guess you could say that. The Thanagarians have left, in any case."

"That's good . . . the League came through after all?"

"Yes."

Dick smiled weakly and was quiet for a long time.

"How do you feel, Dick?" she finally asked, wanting so badly to ask him a something else.

"I've been better," he took a deep breath, "No rooftops for me for awhile."

"You'll be back kicking ass in Bludhaven before you know it."

Dick chuckled and reached out with his hand. She grasped it gently and cupped it between both of hers. His grip was weak, but he still managed a short squeeze. He sighed and finally opened his eyes with some effort. Slowly, they focused on her.

"You're beautiful, Babs."

She blushed.

"Flattery will get you everywhere, Boy Wonder."

He lingered on her for quite some time before peering off into the distance.

"Why are we in the Batcave?"

"Well, that's a bit of a story."

His gaze came back to her and a familiar grin appeared on his face.

"I don't think I'm going anywhere anytime soon."

---

"So it went well, J'onn?"

"Indeed," said the voice on the other end of the phone. The line was secure and encrypted so both League members could speak freely. J'onn could have easily used telepathy, but he knew Batman was more comfortable communicating via technology.

"Batgirl performed admirably," J'onn continued, "Quick, efficient, and smart. You should be proud."

"I can't take all the credit."

"But surely your training honed her skills."

"She had a lot of talent to begin with."

Indeed, she was talented in so many ways. When had he forgotten that?

"In any case," J'onn continued, "she would make an excellent addition to the team."

Bruce was mildly surprised.

"So you agree with me, now? Last night you put up quite an argument."

"My experience with heroes outside of the League is . . . limited. However, if they are as competent as Batgirl then it only makes sense to expand."

"Good," Bruce walked over to his computer and began to input commands. "I'm sending you some information on what happened today at the meeting."

"Any progress?"

"Slow going, but I'm laying the groundwork."

"When will you be back?"

"Not tonight. Too much arm-twisting on tap for tomorrow."

"You might want to reconsider."

Bruce stopped typing and frowned.

"Why?"

"I am sensing that Nightwing has awoken."

Bruce paused. He stared at the monitor.

Sensing his friend's indecision, J'onn decided to take matters into his own hands.

"Diana is on her way back. I can easily have her pick you up on the roof."

"J'onn, I hardly need her to give me a ride in my own city."

"As true as that may be, I have already given her your coordinates. You can meet her on the roof or she can come down and get you at your suite."

_He's enjoying this,_ Bruce thought darkly. He sighed, stood up, and began to change.

"I'll be there."

---

"Wow."

"Told you it was a story."

"Supergirl, huh?"

Batgirl smiled broadly. "Saved the day just like the Big Guy himself."

"I wish I could have seen that." Dick turned his head a little, taking in his surroundings once again. "I still can't believe Bruce had me transported back here."

She leaned back in the chair she had pulled up earlier. "You know Bruce. His way or the highway. I thought he was going a bit overboard, but you appear to have pulled through okay."

Dick sighed and closed his eyes again.

"No. He did the right thing."

Barbara's eyes widened. "Really? I'm shocked you'd admit that, even to me."

"I've made some pretty serious enemies in Bludhaven. Remind me to tell you about Blockbuster some day." He tried to sit up and stretch a bit, grimaced quickly, and settled back into his bed. "There was a real chance he might have tried something if he knew where I was."

As he finished speaking, a large yawn escaped.

"You should get some rest." She said quietly.

"You're probably right."

They sat in silence.

Finally, Barbara decided to take the plunge.

"Dick?"

"Yeah, Babs?" he replied, a little sleepily.

"When we were in the cell, you said a few things. . . "

Nightwing opened his eyes, curious at her tone.

"I did?"

Her heart began to beat faster, as she felt blood rush to her face.

"Yes. You were only semi-conscious at the time, but still, it was . . . "

She trailed off. _Why can't you just come out and say it?_

He was intent upon her now. "It was . . . ?"

Like a dam bursting, she just blurted it all out.

"Dick, you told me that you had bought a ring, but you never gave it to me because of what happened that night on the roof. You know, the last night you were Robin. The last night I saw you for over a year."

_There. That wasn't so bad._

The silence was deafening.

It was as if they were both frozen in time. Two subterranean statues, staring at each other throughout eternity.

Finally, Dick blinked and swallowed hard.

"I said _that_?"

Barbara nodded. She then realized she had been holding her breath. With some effort, she began to breathe again.

Dick avoided her gaze, staring down at his bed.

"I can't believe I said that to you." He murmured, more to himself than her.

"You did," she said firmly, "And I think we need to talk about it."

Nightwing sighed.

"Babs, you have to realize, I thought for sure we were going to die---"

"Are you going to try and tell me now that you didn't mean it?"

"Of course I meant it," Dick responded, "At least, I meant it at the time. It's not like I was thinking very clearly." He kept avoiding her gaze.

Barbara found herself becoming impatient and a bit angry, "So you didn't buy a ring?"

"Yes—I mean, no! Hell, Babs, it's not like it matters anymore."

"Why not?"

"What?"

"Why doesn't it matter anymore?"

She was standing now, arms crossed. Her shadow fell over his prone form.

"Look, can we not do this right now?" He attempted to roll away from her, but was only partially successful, given all of the medical connections on his body.

"I really think we need to discuss it, Dick."

"Okay, try to see it from my point of view for a second," He finally looked straight at her, a bit of anger of his own starting to surface, "You've had days to mull this over. I'm just finding out about it now. I had no idea I told you about the ring."

He paused, and then added sheepishly, "I, uh, didn't mention anything else, did I?"

"Like what?" She bent forward, "What else haven't you told me?"

"What else haven't _you_ told me?" he spat back.

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"You never really told me why you finally left Gotham!"

"What?" she backed up a step.

_This conversation certainly isn't going the way I want it to._

"Oh, come on!" Ignoring the warning of his medical equipment, Nightwing actually sat up and pointed at her. "You come back to him after Grad school. You set up a whole new life, complete with a nice day job, proximity to your father, and the ability to help _him_ out as much as you can. Nice apartment. Dinner with Daddy now and then. It's the perfect set up. Then, all of a sudden, you leave Gotham and the entire life you've built there. You didn't just do that on a whim!"

Realization swept through her.

"You've been checking up on me!"

"Not really," his anger melted into guilt, "Okay. Maybe a little bit."

"Why?"

"Oh, come on. Why do you think?"

Barbara went quiet. _Why didn't I just let it go? This is getting bad._

"I'm sorry, Dick. We don't have to talk about it if you don't want to."

Nightwing sank back into his bed, much to the relief of his diagnostic equipment.

"Look, you just sort of blind-sided me, that's all. All kinds of--all kinds of stuff--old issues, you know, are being dredged back up now, and frankly, I'm too damned beat to hell to deal with it right now."

"Dick—"

"Just give me a little time, Barbara! Please!"

He met her gaze again. She could swear he looked like he was about to cry.

"Please?" he whispered again, practically begging.

They stared at each other in the dim silence of the vast cavern.

At last, she turned away.

"Fine. Get some rest. We'll talk later."

"Thank you, Babs."

She began to leave, but suddenly stopped and turned back.

'Just one question, Dick, and I'll leave you alone."

He exhaled slowly.

"Just one. I promise."

"Okay," he nodded, "What?"

"Why didn't you ask me? Why didn't you ask me before you left us?"

_Before you left me?_

She waited. After a long time, she thought maybe he wasn't going to respond. She had reached the elevator by the time he spoke out.

"Would you have said yes, Barbara?"

This reply left her scrambling, both mentally and emotionally. Barbara pushed the button to open the elevator and stepped inside. She closed her eyes, fighting back the sadness and tears that came unbidden.

"I don't know."

Silence.

"Well, then," he said dismissively, "I guess it's a good thing that I didn't."

The elevator door slid shut.


	14. Conversations and Consequences

He hated waiting.

Some would find that difficult to understand or perhaps consider it to be an oxymoron, since as Batman he would often meld with the shadows and lurk patiently for hours on end for a criminal to make his appearance, but that was a necessary component of the Mission. As such, it was a useful tactic and he utilized it often.

Waiting for any other purpose, especially waiting on others in the League, was a waste of precious time that could be put to any of a hundred better uses.

He had catalogued over fifty particular ways he could be spending his time this evening (sleep being in the top ten), when he finally detected Wonder Woman's lithe form skimming the rooftops. Not wanting to let any more time slip away, he uncharacteristically emerged from the darkness of the rooftop and stood in the open.

Diana quickly caught sight of him and landed gracefully on the roof of WayneTech headquarters. He quickly took in her appearance. Despite the grime and sweat from her hard work battling the earthquake in Chile, she still looked beautiful. In fact, her grittiness somehow made her even more attractive to him. The fact that she didn't mind getting down and dirty when required was a trait he admired.

Still, she had wasted his time.

"What took you so long?" he said abruptly.

"Sorry. I decided to park the plane at the Manor before I came to get you. Hope you don't mind a personal lift." She smiled innocently as she held out her hands.

_She's knows damn well I mind._

He bit back a retort and walked towards her.

"Fine. Let's get to the Manor. I have a busy day tomorrow."

"Sure you don't want some dinner, first? I'm starving." She flashed her perfect teeth.

"I already ate."

She rolled her eyes.

"You're no fun."

He shrugged in spite of himself. "I'm sure Alfred has something for us in the fridge."

She grinned, stepped quickly behind him, and scooped him up effortlessly under the arms.

Seconds later, the two of them were soaring out over the bay, heading towards the Manor. The brisk night air felt pleasant on his face. He could tell she was taking her time.

Normally, he hated being carried, especially by Clark. Lantern's bubbles were tolerable, although he hated the way they made everything look green. Hawkgirl usually dangled him from the arms, businesslike and efficient. But Diana always carried him close to her.

Deep inside, part of him didn't mind.

Her face was only inches from his ear, allowing them to converse over the rush of air.

"I have a question for you, Bruce," she said lightly, a playfulness creeping into her tone.

"What is it?" He tried not to sound uncomfortable even as his legs dangled below him, over a thousand feet in the air. _We should be there in a few minutes. Unless she decides to take a detour. . . _

He was beginning to regret not simply summoning the Batwing.

"For someone that claims to be such a loner, you certainly have plenty of companions. Alfred, Nightwing, Batgirl, not to mention Robin. You practically have a Bat League of your own. How did _that_ happen?"

"It's complicated," he swallowed hard as she banked to avoid one of the spires of a bridge. _She did that on purpose! _"And I'd rather not talk about it right now."

Diana sighed, "Okay, then. Here's another question."

The Manor was finally coming into view. A small, dark speck growing slowly larger atop the cliff face. They couldn't get there soon enough, as far as he was concerned.

"What is it, Diana?" He was growing impatient with her banter. Sometimes he enjoyed their verbal jousting in spite of himself, but right now he had to focus. What was he going to say to Dick? Could he mend fences after all this time?

"Do you know that Batgirl's in love with you?"

Bruce suddenly realized that however close the Manor was, it wasn't nearly close enough.

-----

Several tissues and half a pint of gourmet ice cream later, and Barbara felt better.

Not _a lot_ better, but better.

"Why did I say that?" she said to no one in particular, shoving the half eaten container back in the freezer before sitting down once again at the cozy kitchen table. She had always liked the kitchen better than the formal dining room, and she had fond memories of time spent around the worn wooden table with Alfred and Tim. Bruce was rarely in the kitchen, usually taking his meals in the Cave, in front of the TV, or skipping them altogether. And Dick . . . well, Dick wasn't around much after she gained full-time status on the Bat team.

She took a sip of the fresh coffee the butler had so thoughtfully left out for her and sighed.

_You shouldn't have pressed him. Now things are all messed up._

_Again._

She thought she should probably drag herself up to one of the guestrooms and go to bed. She was breaking one of the major Manor rules by even being topside in her costume. Although, with two of the League now residing there, she supposed that particular rule had been relaxed.

_Funny how all the rules go out the window whenever _she's_ involved._

For about the millionth time, she wondered just how much longer she was going to carry the torch for Bruce. _It's not like I haven't sustained third degree burns by now._

Carrying her cup with her, she turned off the lights and headed upstairs, wearily taking the steps one at a time. She was almost to the top when she caught a glimpse of movement in the moonlight of the courtyard. She paused by the window, instinctively moving to one side.

It was Bruce and Wonder Woman.

_Oh my God! He's letting her CARRY him?_

She knew she should look away and go to bed.

And she knew it really wasn't any of her business what they did with each other.

And she certainly knew she shouldn't eavesdrop.

But she cracked open a panel of the window and did so anyway.

-----

Diana set them down gently on the lawn of the inner courtyard. She knew Bruce probably would have preferred using the cave entrance, but she didn't want to disturb Batgirl and Nightwing. Besides, it too lovely a night to be underground.

"Well?" she asked, hands on hips. "Aren't you going to answer the question?"

He began to stalk away towards a side entrance.

"I don't waste time answering ridiculous questions," he muttered.

"Oh no, you don't!" She flew in front of him and blocked his path, hovering about a foot off the ground. "You're not getting off the hook that easily."

She saw him tense up, and for an instant, she wondered if he was going to attack her.

"After all, I know where you live," she smiled.

It was a stupid little joke, but it had the desired effect.

His shoulders slumped a bit and he sighed.

"Yes, I know."

Diana was surprised by this admission. Equally surprising was the jolt of jealousy that rippled through her gut.

"You know Batgirl loves you?" She wanted to be clear.

"She told me."

Diana raised her eyebrows. Although she had had her suspicions, having those suspicions confirmed didn't make her feel any better.

In fact, she was feeling much worse.

Bruce appeared to be oblivious to the effect his simple statements were having on her as he continued to speak.

"She told me several weeks ago. In fact, she left Gotham over it. That's why she was in Bludhaven when the invasion occurred."

Diana was stunned. _He's so blasé about it. Surely he's not that cold._

Almost as if he was enjoying her discomfort, he continued on blithely, staring up at the stars, "Now that she's back at the Manor things have been a bit . . . uncomfortable."

"Why's that?" she finally managed to blurt out.

Bruce was silent for awhile.

_Stop brooding and show some emotion, damn it!_ She kept this thought to herself, although she really wanted to grab him and shout it at his face.

"It's just an infatuation," he said softly, eyes distant. "She'll get over it. She knows that I can't afford to have a relationship like that."

"And why not?" she demanded.

Her words seemed to bring him out of whatever reverie he had been in.

Abruptly Bruce disappeared and Batman replied, "That's not important right now."

He stepped around her and headed to the door.

"There's a lot that has to be accomplished in the next couple weeks if we are to revive the League and make it stronger. You should be concentrating on that goal, Diana. Nothing else."

He disappeared through the doorway.

This time, she let him go.

-----

Batman made his way to the Grandfather Clock entrance to the Cave and opened the secret portal. He descended the familiar stone steps like he had a thousand times before. He was only about halfway down them when an equally familiar voice drifted up from below.

"Hey, Bruce. Decided to grace me with your presence?"

He ignored the sarcasm. He'd had enough witty repartee for one night.

"I came to see how you are doing."

He made it over to the medical bay by the time Nightwing replied.

"Yeah, well, I'll live."

"You seem agitated. Do you want me to up the pain-killers?" He looked over the diagnostic machinery, secretly pleased and relieved at his ward's progress.

"Listen, Bruce, we need to talk."

"You're right," he pulled off the cowl and rubbed his eyes. "Listen, Dick, I know the past couple years haven't been easy for you. For both of us. And I just---"

"You misunderstand, Bruce," Dick interrupted, "I'm not talking about you and me."

"Then what . . . ?"

The two men locked eyes.

"Let's talk about you and Barbara."

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Author's Note: Nice to see some new reviewers. Thanks for all the kind words and keep 'em coming. I'm starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel with this story, but I have a few more twists and turns before we get there. I'm trying to stick to Canon as much as possible, but I'm not ruling out going AU at some point. I'd appreciate some feedback on this issue. Should I keep it in Canon or should I go alternative universe?


	15. A New Day

Barbara stared up at the ceiling of her guestroom. It was one of those old-fashioned ceilings with patterns etched in the plaster. In any other ancient house she would have been able to see cobwebs in the corners of this little used chamber, but Wayne Manor was the domain of Alfred Pennyworth and everything was as spotless as the day it was built while still maintaining the austerity and charm of an earlier era.

She couldn't get to sleep, although by all rights she should be exhausted. She turned to look at the clock by the bedside. It was probably older than she was, but it still kept perfect time. Right now it told her it was almost two in the morning.

Barbara sighed as she recounted the conversation she had overheard in the courtyard for about the hundredth time. Then she rolled on her side and closed her eyes.

_I've got to get out of here before I lose my mind._

-----

"I'm afraid I don't understand, Dick."

"Cut the crap, Bruce. You know exactly what I'm talking about."

Bruce was becoming annoyed. He didn't have to put up with this.

"Why don't you enlighten me, Nightwing."

Dick rolled his eyes and sat up gingerly. Although he did a masterful job covering his pain, Bruce could tell it took a lot out of him. "Okay, World's Greatest Detective, let's put all of our cards on the table."

"Why did Barbara finally leave Gotham, Bruce? After all these years, all this time. She even came back here after getting her graduate degree. And then she stayed on after you formed the League, and you obviously needed her to pick up the slack then."

Batman stiffened. "I don't create slack."

"Bullshit, Bruce. Even you can't be in two places at once. Barbara was practically solo half the time this past year, especially since you sent Tim to the Titans."

Bruce began to pace, turning away from the young man in the hospital bed.

"Barbara has been a great help. There's no doubt about that."

"Was that a compliment?" Dick whistled. "Batman made a compliment. Alert the press."

Batman whirled around, teeth clenched. _He always knows how to get under my skin._

"Get. To. The. Point."

Dick smirked. "It doesn't work on me anymore, Bruce. It did when I was a kid, but that was a long time ago."

"This is a waste of time." He began to leave.

"Yeah, that's right!" Dick called after him. "Run away, Bruce. It's what you do best."

Batman stopped, cape settling around him like a shroud.

The silence barely hinted at the gulf between them.

Dick stared at his mentor's still form, wondering if he had gone too far.

"I never meant for you to hate me, Dick," he said softly.

"Hate you?"

"I did the best I could. I know it wasn't an ideal way to grow up. Still, I hoped—"

"DAMN IT, BRUCE! THIS ISN'T ABOUT US!"

Alarms went off and Dick gasped in pain.

Instantly, Bruce was there, gently lowered him back to the bed.

"Ouch." Nightwing whispered.

"Stay still. Get some rest." He increased the morphine drip.

Dick began to protest.

"We'll talk again soon. When you're better."

"You don't deserve her," the young man said simply, as the drugs kicked in.

Bruce remained silent.

"You don't deserve her, Bruce," Dick muttered, sinking into the graceful embrace of unconsciousness, "You don't . . ."

He waited until his former ward was asleep before he finally responded.

"I know."

-----

It was an unusually pleasant day in Gotham.

The sun rose cheerfully in the sky, chasing away the shadowy phantoms of the night and a cool ocean breeze removed the fog that often tarried well into the morning. Even the dour façade of Wayne Manor couldn't fully resist the daylight, especially once Alfred drew back the heavy drapes and let the day's brilliant into the mansion.

Barbara stumbled down the steps in a nightgown she had found in the closet and made her way to the kitchen. The sweet aroma of breakfast made her stomach growl.

"Coffee, Alfred," she declared, entering the kitchen, "And leave the pot!"

"Very good, Mistress Barbara. Breakfast will be in fifteen minutes in the dining room."

"The dining room? How come?" she sat down and poured herself a large cup.

Alfred added some more vegetables to the omelet he was preparing.

"Well, my dear, I do have the four of you to feed before you all separate to the far corners of the world. Who knows if you will have a decent meal the rest of the day?"

"Wait a minute, Alfred," Barbara said, the caffeine beginning to clear her head. "Do you mean we're having a formal breakfast today?"

Alfred paused, as he walked over to the cutting board and began to slice up fruit, "I took the liberty to prepare a meal for Master Bruce and his guests. Since when is it _formal _to have a host and those under his roof to share a meal?"

Barbara smiled, stood up, and pecked the Englishman on the cheek.

"You're enjoying this, aren't you, Alfred?"

"I'm sure I have no idea to what you refer, Madam."

"Uh huh," Barbara began to leave. _I better take a quick shower._

"Mistress Barbara?"

She paused at the bottom of the stairs.

"Yes, Alfred?"

"Don't be late."

-----

Exactly fifteen minutes later, Barbara found herself sitting at the dining room table with a Martian, an Amazon, and a clearly annoyed Bruce Wayne. It was quite a spread, with a fruit plate, ham, bacon, two types of omelets, pancakes, waffles, bagels, and various beverages. Alfred had insisted on pouring each of their drinks before taking some of the food down to Dick.

"This is wonderful, Bruce." Wonder Woman remarked. "Are you sure we can't have him for the new Watchtower?"

"Perhaps he could be enlisted to train the cooks." J'onn said, carefully eyeing a strawberry before putting it into his mouth..

"Wait a minute, you guys are going to have cooks?" This was news to Barbara.

"Indeed," the Martian continued, apparently satisfied with the fruit as he began to put several more on his plate, "We will be needing several specialists on the support staff."

"Support staff?"

Barbara looked over at Bruce, who was buried in the newspaper as usual..

Suddenly, Wonder Woman snatched the paper away.

"That's rude, Bruce."

For a split second, he appeared to be in shock. That look, so out of place on Bruce's face, caused Barbara to laugh out loud. He shot a glare in her direction, and she quickly turned away, trying vainly to stifle her giggles.

The J'onn watched this interaction with amusement, while Wonder Woman simply put the paper out of reach and took a sip of her juice.

Barbara realized she was starting to like her in spite of everything.

-----

A half hour later, she was in the kitchen once again, putting away the leftovers. She knew Alfred wouldn't have approved, but she wasn't going to let him do all the work. Despite Bruce's crankiness, the meal had been a success. All of them had eaten heartily and she had gotten to know both of the Leaguers a little better. Their plans for the new team were impressive and somewhat daunting. It was fascinating to have a behind the scenes look at history being made.

"Mistress Barbara!" an English accent stated, somewhat crossly.

"Sorry, Alfred," she teased, "If you wanted to clean up the table, you shouldn't have spent so much time down there talking to Dick."

The butler was at a loss for words.  
Barbara walked over and hugged the older man.

"It's okay, Alfred. We were all worried about him. I'm sure he was glad to see you."

Alfred blushed and quickly disengaged from her, "Be that as it may, Mistress Barbara, I assure you that I was merely doing my duty."

With a bit of a flourish, he presented to her a piece of high qualify stationary.

"What's this?" she unfolded it and began to read.

"Master Dick has requested that you return to Bludhaven and retrieve a few things from his apartment as he will be residing here for the time being."

She looked through it. Most of it related to the Business, including a carefully hidden laptop which contained most of his data on the various criminals of the city.

"Why me? Bruce has the Batwing."

"Apparently," Alfred deftly continuing the task she had begun, "Master Dick would prefer to have you do it."

"I can't imagine why," the butler added dryly, holding a glass up to the light before decided it wasn't quite clean enough to be put away.

_That's true. I don't think I'd want Bruce looking over all of my stuff either._

She folded the paper and put it in her pocket.

"Well, I guess I know what I'm doing today. Actually, I should probably stop at my place too and try to get my civilian life back into some kind of order."

She looked at her watch.

"I better get going. With traffic, it's going to take a couple hours to get there."

"I could give you a lift." A voice called from the hallway.

Both of them turned as Wonder Woman, now in her costume, walked in.

"Um," Batgirl envisioned herself dangling perilously high over the countryside, while the Amazon flew at subsonic speeds, "I don't really think---"

"Don't be silly. I'll take you in my plane."

"I haven't seen a plane."

Wonder Woman laughed.

Barbara wondered what was so funny.

-----

Barbara tried not to keep looking down as the countryside whipped past her several thousand feet below, but the simple fact that the entire vehicle she found herself in was invisible made this all but impossible.

_Note to self: Get Bruce to pony up personal airborne transport for me._

The invisible jet began to descend rapidly.

_As quickly as possible._

"Are you okay, Batgirl? You've been pretty quiet the whole trip."

"Oh, I'm fine, thanks." _I'm just 10 thousand feet in the air surrounded by nothingness!_

Maybe if she engaged in conversation she would stop freaking out.

"So, uh, Wonder Woman . . . "

"It's Diana, Batgirl. Please."

"Um, okay," Barbara decided that closing her eyes made things so much easier, "So, Diana, Bruce told me that you're an Amazon, right?"

"That's correct. My sisters and I reside on the island Themiscrya. Would you like to see it someday? It's quite beautiful."

"What? Oh, yeah. Sure. That would be . . . great, I guess."

_Why is she being so nice? _

_Then again, why am I being such a jerk?_

"Perhaps once things settle down with the League, I'll take you there."

"It is true there are no men there?"

"Men are forbidden to set foot on the island."

"But I thought Bruce told me he went there once."

Wonder Woman smiled, or at least Barbara assumed she smiled by the tone of her voice as she was still keeping her eyes screwed shut, "Yes, well, Bruce isn't one to follow the rules."

Barbara laughed. "You got that right."

_Damn it, it would be so much easier if she'd just let me hate her._

"Isn't that kind of weird, though?" she asked the Amazon, "Not having men around? How do you, uh, you know, have babies?"

Diana laughed. "Bruce didn't tell you? All Amazons are immortal. We haven't had any babies for thousands of years. Except me, of course. But I was a special case."

"You're immortal?" This made Barbara finally open her eyes.

"Unless something ends up killing me."

-----

It was nightfall before she finally made it to Dick's apartment.

She hadn't meant to take all day at her place, but there was a lot to do to get her life back in order, not the least of which being setting up a temporary leave of absence from work. Fortunately, with her computer skills, she was able to cut through the bureaucratic red tape and get herself a full month off. In the aftermath of the invasion, her impromptu vacation wouldn't even look out of the ordinary.

Plenty of people were reprioritizing their lives these days.

_Amazing how a little near End of the World experience can change people._

She approached the apartment from the roof. Dick had written down the access code to the skylight for her. She used the Bat-grapple to reach the roof and carefully took stock of the surroundings before attempting to go in.

For once, the weather was cooperating. Heavy clouds obscured the moon and stars. Other than a few lights from neighboring buildings, it was dark.

_This would have been easier if he had given me the key._

But the keys had been lost, just like her own personal effects, when they had been captured by the Thanagarians. It seemed like a life time ago, although in reality it had only been several days.

Satisfied she was not being watched, she entered the code and quickly disappeared inside the building.

-----

_Nice pad. He's got a dojo and everything._

She had gathered almost everything on the list. Now all she had to do was open the safe and retrieve the laptop. She entered Nightwing's bedroom and made her way to the closet. As she opened the door, she looked over at the bed.

It was unmade.

Barbara smiled. _Some things never change._

She slid the hangers out of the way, and was about to remove the false cover that lead to the safe when something caught her eye. A garment that looked out of place among Dick's civilian clothes.

She carefully took the hanger off and held it up.

A silky, black negligee presented itself.

"That's mine."

The voice came from behind, causing Barbara to jump.

She spun around, as the bedroom lights were flipped on.

Barbara found herself staring at a dark-haired woman clad in a mostly purple costume with a cape and mask that covered the top part of her face. She was obviously in the Business and fairly skilled as she had snuck up on her.

This woman was also pointing a crossbow at her.

"Uh, hello there," Barbara said carefully, holding her hands up, still holding the hanger with the lingerie. "I don't think we've met. I'm Bat—"

"I know who you are."

The woman with the crossbow advanced another step.

"You're the bitch who broke his heart."

"What?" _Who is this woman?_

"You have five seconds to tell me where Nightwing is, or I'm going to have the time of my life kicking your ass."

_Oh boy._


	16. Girl Fight

"Geeze, Dick, you look like crap!"

Nightwing smiled in spite of himself. "Thanks, Tim. You always know just what to say."

Robin's happy grin was readily apparent on the view screen in the Cave. Despite Alfred's objections, Richard Grayson had convinced the butler to help him into a wheelchair that morning. He had then rolled in front of the main terminal of the computer and spent several hours catching up on the news. After that, determined to be useful while he was convalescing, he spent several more updating various files on criminal activity for Bruce.

Finally, after Alfred took away the evening's meal, he had contacted Tim Drake.

"So how are the Titans working out?"

"Oh, they're all right," Tim admitted, "But they're nothing like the old man. Hey! How come you're in the Cave? I thought you were in Bludhaven these days."

"I got busted up pretty good by the Thanagarians, so Bruce is putting me up."

"That's awesome!"

Nightwing stared at the teen-ager.

Robin colored slightly, "I mean, awesome that Bruce took you in, not that you got injured. Anyway, what kind of action did you guys see against the bird guys? We only had a few minor skirmishes. Starfire said the Thanagarians were supposed to be pretty tough, but Cyborg hit 'em with his sonic blaster and then Beast Boy turned into a T-Rex and Raven---"

Dick found his mind wandering as Robin rambled on. Not that he wasn't interested in what Tim was up to, but he kept wondering when Barbara was coming back.

_How long does it take to get some stuff from my place?_

"Hey, Dick?"

Nightwing brought his attention back to Robin. "Yes?"

"Can I get some advice from you?"

"Uh, sure. What's up? Having trouble with the Birdarang aerodynamics again?"

"No, nothing like that. Cyborg's pretty good with that type of thing, anyway."

"Okay," Dick was becoming intrigued, "What is it then?"

"Well," Tim was obviously becoming uncomfortable. The teen looked around carefully before continuing. "You've got a lot of experience with women, right? I mean, what with Barbara and all."

"Um, sure," Dick grinned, "Does our little Robin have a crush?"

"Come on, Dick," Tim said angrily, "Don't be a dick. I'm serious here. It's not like I can talk to the old man or Alfred about this."

"Okay, okay!" Nightwing laughed, "It's just that you're probably talking to the wrong guy. My luck with the ladies hasn't been all that great lately."

"That's not what you told me a couple months ago," Tim said slyly, "What was her name again? Honey?"

"Huntress."

"Whatever," he shrugged, "The point is, whether it's good experience or bad experience, it's still _more_ experience than me. And I could really use your perspective on this."

"All right," Nightwing leaned back in the wheelchair, "Shoot. How can Dr. Nightwing help his lovelorn young friend?"

"Dick."

"That's my name, don't wear it out."

"Asshole."

"That's better," Nightwing laughed.

Soon enough, Robin joined in.

-----

"Look, is the crossbow really necessary?"

Batgirl kept her hands up as she surreptitiously hooked a foot on the bottom corner of the closet door. Nightwing's bedroom closet was a walk-in. With any luck she would be able to dive backwards into it, hopefully blocking or at least deflecting the quarrel in the process.

_If this psycho doesn't shot me before I'm ready._

"Where is Nightwing? What are you doing in his apartment?"

The woman steadied her weapon with both hands as she carefully placed one thigh high boot on the foot of the king-sized bed. She didn't take her eyes off Batgirl for a second.

"I'm not telling you anything until I know who you are," Barbara replied, muscles tensed.

"I'm the Huntress. That's all you need to know."

"How do you know Nightwing?"

The Huntress smiled coolly. "Isn't it obvious?"

_Nice to know he wasn't pining away for me all these years. _

Still, while she knew she had no claim on him, jealously stabbed quickly through her heart.

"Well, if you're so close to him, how come he hasn't let you know how he's doing?"

"Bitch!"

The crossbow fired. Batgirl lunged backward, foot dragging the door with her. Fortunately, Nightwing had grown accustomed to the finer things in life, including decent furniture. The thick, wooden door stopped the bolt completely.

_Way to defuse the situation, Babs, _she thought, quickly getting back to her feet.

The Huntress didn't give her much time to recover, flinging the door back open and swinging with a strong right hook. Barbara blocked the punch and countered with a quick jab of her own.

It caught the taller woman in the face, but she rolled with the blow. Before Batgirl could pull back her arm, it had been caught by both of her opponent's hands. A quick twist of the torso, and Barbara found herself thrown across the room.

She crashed into the nightstand, sending the reading lamp, books, and alarm clock clattering to the floor. Barbara snatched a couple Batarangs from her belt and threw them at her foe. By the time the Huntress had recovered from dodging the projectiles, she was back on her feet in a wary combat stance.

The Huntress led with a kick this time. Barbara pivoted, avoiding the leg, and landed a solid blow to the head. Unfortunately, her opponent seemed to be unfazed as she returned the favor with her own punch to the face.

Batgirl took a step back and tried a side kick. The Huntress caught her leg and pulled her off balance. Barbara then kicked with her other leg, connecting with the woman's chest. Unfortunately, this action made her land on her back, but at least it gave her some room.

Barbara used a move Bruce had taught her to get to her feet quickly and assumed a defensive stance. She wasn't quick enough, however, as the Huntress' flying kick nailed her and drove her out of the bedroom and into the hallway.

She hit the wall hard.

Her foe swung at her head. Batgirl barely ducked and flinched as she felt the Huntress' fist slam into the wall. _That's gotta hurt._

Batgirl made a quick uppercut, palm of her hand smashing forcefully into the Huntress' chin. The taller woman backed off for a moment, wiping her mouth, which was trickling blood.

"You wanna play rough, little girl?" Huntress said, spitting more blood before standing straight. Suddenly a metal bo staff was in her hands, "Let's play rough."

-----

"Thanks, Dick. I appreciate it."

"Just don't do anything stupid, Tim. There aren't any Bat-condoms in the utility belt, you know."

"Funny, Dick. Very funny."

"Seriously, though. Be careful. Who knows if your physiologies are even compatible?"

"Look, I'm just going to try and get through a first date for now, okay?"

"Okay. Next time, you might want to talk to Barbara about Starfire. Woman's intuition and all that."

"How is Barbara doing, by the way? I haven't talked to her in a long time."

"Good," he said hastily, "She's good."

"Good, huh?" Tim teased, "Must be tough being torn between two women like that."

"I'm not torn. Nothing's going on between me and Barbara right now."

"Sure there isn't."

Nightwing glared at the younger Robin.

"Hey! No need to pull a Bruce on me."

Robin then looked at his watch, "Sorry to cut this short, Dick, but the sun set a couple hours ago out here. Time for our nightly patrol."

"Go get 'em, tiger. And don't chicken out. Ask her after you guys make your rounds."

"Aye, aye, Captain."

Robin mock saluted and then the transmission was ended.

_The kid's all right. Maybe Bruce should have sent me to a Titans group when I was Robin. It might have been nice to hang around with other kids in the Business._

He stared at the main computer screen, eyes beginning to droop. He hated to admit it, but it was time to get some rest.

But first, he'd give Barbara a call.

_I wonder what's keeping her?_

-----

They had fought their way into the dojo.

Barbara was pretty grateful for this, as it was the one room where she had ample space to keep out of reach of the Huntress' staff. As bad as getting punched and kicked was, she didn't relish getting up close and personal with a steel rod.

By now, both women had realized they were more or less evenly matched. Batgirl was a bit quicker, but the Huntress was stronger. The redhead was more agile, while the brunette was more aggressive. Both of them had a half dozen injuries, mainly bumps and bruises. And while each of them was breathing heavily, neither appeared ready to give up.

The Huntess swung her bo staff in a wide arc, hoping to catch her opponent, but Batgirl back flipped gracefully out of range. A couple more Batarangs flew at her. She spun her staff rapidly, blocking one completely, while the other was merely deflected. The sharp metal left a jagged tear on her right shoulder.

Growling madly, the Huntress used her staff like a pole vault and managed to drive both feet into her foe. Batgirl exhaled sharply as she was knocked back off her feet, coming to rest against a padded wall.

"Do yourself a favor, Red, and stay down," Huntress commanded.

"Bite me."

Barbara threw several tear gas pellets. Her opponent was too good to be taken completely by surprise, but the Huntress did inhale a lungful before moving rapidly out of the searing cloud of gas. While she attempted to exhale the gas, Barbara dove at her foe, hitting her solidly in the torso. She drove her adversary into the floor and yanked hard with both hands.

She was rewarded as the bo staff flew into the air and clattered into a corner.

Her successful disarming maneuver had a price. One of Huntress' knees came up and did an excellent job turning her guts into jelly. The two women separated and stood up.

They began to circle warily.

"Wanna call it a night?" Batgirl asked.

"I'm just getting warmed up," Huntress sneered.

Then she attacked once again.

-----

Barbara's cell phone rang twice before the voice mail picked up.

Dick left a quick message and then tried her apartment. There was no answer there, either. He disconnected before her answering machine completed the greeting.

_Well, that's that. Unless . . ._

He began to dial his home phone number.

-----

Like two homicidal dancers, Batgirl and the Huntress moved together.

Attack and counterattack.

Feint and parry.

Strike and block.

Fists, feet, elbows, and knees came together in various combinations, with the occasional head butt thrown in for good measure. Fatigue was clearly evident in both combatants now, but the two heroes continued to battle, using moves that would put a black belt to shame.

Batgirl gritted her teeth, warding off yet another kick. Then she swore until her breath as her foe dodged what would have been a perfect blow to the neck.

It was then she began to hear ringing.

_Great! One too many hits upside the head, Babs. Didn't think I had a concussion._

It was only when the Huntress began to look over to the side that she realized she was hearing a telephone.

By unspoken agreement, the two women backed off and waited for the phone to stop.

It did, but only when the answering machine picked up.

"Hey, you've reached Dick. Leave a message or try me on my cell."

The machine beeped.

-----

Dick sighed, but then he realized that Barbara probably wouldn't answer his phone, even if she was there, unless she knew it was him.

He waited for the machine to beep and spoke.

"Hey, Barbara, it's me. If you're there go ahead and pick up. I want to make sure you got everything before you head back. That is, if I haven't missed you all ready." He kept talking, hoping she would answer. "I talked to Tim today. You won't believe this, but he's crushing on one of his teammates. Isn't that weird? I remember when he wouldn't go near girls. Hey, are you there? Hello?"

The phone clicked.

"Hello."

Dick exhaled in relief.

"Babs! Glad I caught you."

"It's Helena."

Dick nearly dropped the phone.

_Oh shit._


	17. Complications

The Man of Steel emerged from the ocean like some impossibly fast dolphin. As he flew through the night sky at supersonic speed, the air dried him completely within seconds. He went above the clouds to get a nice view of the stars as he continued eastward, the coast still a few thousand miles distant. After all those hours underwater, Superman felt the need to simply enjoy his flight and so he took his time.

His mission had been relatively successful. Arthur had finally agreed to join the League in an official capacity. A valuable ally in the past, Aquaman was now going to be a true member of the team. Both J'onn and Bruce had thought the new League was going to need more experienced veterans, especially with Hawkgirl's resignation, and Arthur had been at the top of a very short list. It had taken a global invasion to finally motivate the King of Atlantis, but apparently having his capital attacked by Thanagarians was something even he couldn't ignore.

_Of course, he didn't commit to full-time status, but then again, neither did Bruce at first._

_Speaking of Bruce . . ._

It had been over a week since they had held the tribunal at the Manor, and he knew from J'onn's telepathic updates that a lot of progress was being made.

_Still, it wouldn't hurt to check up on things in person. Besides, I've got good news to share for a change._

He shifted his flight path slightly, away from Metropolis and toward Gotham.

-----

"I can explain, Helena."

"You better."

Richard Grayson suddenly wished he was still in the coma.

He mentally flipped through the various excuses he could generate and discarded each of them in turn. Helena deserved better than that, but at the same time, he knew he couldn't be entirely truthful either. That always seemed to be the case with their relationship.

They had met at a difficult time in his life, nearly a year after he had left Bruce and Barbara. He had been Nightwing less than a month and was still learning his way around Bludhaven when they had crossed paths. While her methods were a bit more ruthless than he was accustomed to, they were kindred spirits. Both of them were trying to clean up a city that sometimes made Gotham look like Mayberry.

It was after a particular close call with some of Blockbuster's thugs that she had kissed him. Emotions were running high, and he had been pretty lonely. Pride had prevented him from contacting Barbara all that time, and besides Helena shared many of her qualities. She was beautiful, intelligent, and in the Business so he didn't have to hide who he truly was. And unlike Barbara, she didn't fool around when she wanted something.

And it was pretty clear she had wanted him.

Things escalated pretty fast and within a few months they had exchanged keys to each other's places. He had also opened up to her about what had happened between him and Batman, although he did keep Bruce's identity a secret. He even went into a fair amount of detail about his relationship with Barbara. Helena had been very understanding.

At least at first.

But then he began to spend more time in Gotham, crossing paths with Batman and Batgirl again. Helena wasn't happy. And when Tim had managed to get him to reconcile with Bruce, at least briefly, she was even less happy. Eventually, they broke up. There had been other reasons to be sure (like her tendency towards bloodlust and taking the work way too personally), but his willingness to slowly creep back under Batman's shadow was simply too much for her.

But they still hooked up once in awhile, both to fight the good fight and enjoy some time together afterwards. Crime-fighting with benefits, she had called it.

But he had never mentioned Barbara moving to Bludhaven to her.

And now that omission was going to cost him.

Big time.

"I'm still waiting, Dick."

Her voice brought him out of his trip down memory lane.

"I was injured during the invasion. That's why I haven't been around---"

"Are you okay?" The sudden concern in her tone made him feel even worse.

"Yeah, yeah. I won't be smacking scumbags around for awhile, but Batman made sure I got the medical attention I needed. That's where I am now. In Gotham."

"I want to see you. Make sure you're all right."

"You can't, Helena. You know I won't jeopardize Batman's identity, and I'm in no shape to go anywhere else right now."

"You don't owe that bastard anything," she said coolly.

He winced, realizing her prejudice towards his mentor was mostly his fault. He had been pretty bitter back then, and her sympathetic ear was just the catalyst he had needed to vent several years' worth of frustration.

"Yes, I do. He probably saved my life, along with Batgirl."

"Is that why _she's_ here?"

"Pretty much, yeah. She's just picking some stuff up so I won't be completely useless while I recuperate." It was close enough to the truth that he didn't feel guilty.

Much.

"Why didn't you call me? I could have done this for you."

Dick sighed. _Why are you making this so hard?_

"Helena, I've been in a coma. I just came out of it yesterday. And I figured you'd be busy keeping an eye on the city."

"Did you say coma?" She was clearly alarmed now. "I thought you said you were okay?"

"I _am_ okay," he replied, the pit of his stomach beginning to sink, "At least, I'm okay _now_. Don't worry about me. I'm fine."

"I want to see you."

"Helena---"

"I don't care. I want to see you. You can either make arrangements with Batman yourself, or I'll simply come to Gotham and raise such a ruckus that he'll have to deal with me personally. It's your call."

Now it was his turn to be alarmed.

"Okay, okay. I'll see what I can do. Just don't do anything rash."

"Me? Rash? You must be joking," Sarcasm practically dripped from her voice. "I'll give you 24 hours to work something out."

-----

Barbara watched this exchange carefully.

Her guard was still up, but it soon became apparent the fight was over as the Huntress turned her back on her, clearly engrossed in the conversation.

Adrenalin began to drain from her system, only to be replaced by the general aches and pains she always had after a fight.

_She may be a bitch, _Barbara thought gloomily as she decided to leave the dojo and finish getting the stuff she had been sent here for, _But she's a bitch that knows her hand-to-hand._

It took only a few minutes to retrieve the laptop.

She had just secured it with the rest of the items Dick had requested when the Huntress entered the bedroom once again.

Batgirl immediately assumed a defensive stance, muscles protesting.

"Don't bother," the taller woman stated, ignoring the redhead and starting to pick up the stuff that had been knocked off the nightstand. "I'm done wasting time with you."

"Oh, is that so?"

_What am I doing? I don't want to go another five rounds with her!_

But the Huntress continued to ignore her, now setting the reading lamp upright.

"Yes. Now why don't you make like a good little helper and get those things to Dick. I'll clean up here." The purple-clad woman cast a smug look in her direction, "You can even use the front door. I'll lock up since _I_ have a key."

Batgirl opened her mouth to retort, thought better of it, and simply left the room.

_What does Dick see in this wench?_

-----

Superman landed in the Batcave, using the underwater entrance that normally provided the Batboat with egress to the bay. He had just shook off the water when he saw Nightwing rolling his wheelchair carefully back to the medical bay.

"Here, son, let me help you with that."

Before the young man could protest, the Kryptonian gently pushed him next to the bed. A second later, he lifted Nightwing up and set him down on the mattress.

"There you go."

"Thanks, but I could have done it myself."

"You sound just like Bruce when you talk like that."

"I'll take that as a compliment, Superman."

"It wasn't."

Both men grinned.

"I'm glad to see you on the mend, Nightwing. Kara was pretty concerned about you."

"Be sure to thank her for me. She really got both of us out of a jam."

Superman nodded, looking around the Cave.

"Is he here tonight?"

Nightwing sighed, fatigue clearly catching up with him. "I don't know. I haven't talked to him since yesterday. I think Waynetech's been keeping him pretty busy."

"Not quite as easy to shake loose a few billion this time around, huh?"

"Something like that," the young man mumbled.

"Well, I'll let you rest. Mind if I take the elevator?"

"I thought you could fly?"

The Kryptonian chuckled as the former Robin drifted off to sleep.

-----

He didn't find Bruce. Instead he came across Diana, reading in front of a massive fireplace in an equally impressive library. He doubted the Smallville library held as many books as the somber shelves in this two story chamber.

"What are you reading, Diana?"

She looked up, pleasantly surprised. "Hello, Kal-el! Good to see you." She held up the leather bound novel, the title _The Iliad_ clearly embossed in gold on the cover, "It's interesting how the story has evolved over the centuries. This version is fairly different from the one Homer told my mother."

Superman arched an eyebrow. "Your mother knew Homer?"

She smiled. "Of course. She knew Achilles and Hector, too."

"Sometimes I forget your heritage, Diana." He sat down in a comfortable chair across from her, "Too bad I'm a reporter instead of a historian."

"What brings you to the Bathouse?" She set her book aside and gave him her full attention.

"Bathouse?"

"I find it amusing to irritate him," she replied, "He needs to lighten up."

Clark laughed, "Good luck with that. You're probably going to need that immortal life of yours before you see any progress."

He realized his little joke backfired when she just looked away and stared at the roaring fire. An awkward silence settled in, punctuated only by the crackling of the blaze.

"So, uh, Arthur's in."

"That's good." she said absently.

"I convinced him to contribute some of his treasury to the construction of the new Watchtower. I felt it was important that Bruce didn't carry the whole burden this time."

"Oh, he loves carrying burdens," she said bitterly.

"Diana, what's wrong?"

Before she could answer, J'onn's green form descended through the ceiling.

"Greetings."

"Hello, J'onn."

"I take it the negotiations went well."

Before he knew it, he found himself in a long conversation about the continuing effort to rebuild the League. J'onn had many questions about Arthur's financial support, including how the rest of the world would react to the sovereign nation of Atlantis bankrolling the Justice League. At the end, they decided to call all six of them together for a vote.

By the time he was ready to leave and turned to wish Diana good night, he realized that the Amazon had long since departed.


	18. Remembrance

The incessant buzzing of the alarm clock interrupted a particularly pleasant dream.

Barbara groaned and smacked the snooze button with annoyance. Her body complained at the sudden movement, muscles aching as she rolled away from the clock and hugged one of the many pillows she had piled on her queen-sized bed. She had just about drifted back to sleep when the alarm sounded yet again.

"Geeze! Give me a break," Her arm swiped at the clock, this time switching it off completely.

She was sorely tempted to succumb to the fatigue suffusing her body. After all, there was no reason why she had get up right away. Dick could wait until the afternoon for his stuff. In fact, considering what she had had to go through in order to retrieve it, a delay would serve him right.

_Actually, I have half a mind to simply dump his crap in the river._

She closed her eyes, soaking up the warm comfort of her bed.

_Maybe just a few more minutes . . ._

Moments later, she was sound asleep.

-----

Nightwing's body trembled as he held himself upright in the rings.

Slowly and incrementally, he brought his legs up, until they were extended perpendicularly in front of him. Dull pain in his torso attempted to remind the young man of his injuries, but he simply set aside the uncomfortable feeling and continued to exercise.

"Master Dick! I must insist you cease this foolishness this instant!"

Dick smiled at the command. "Good morning, Alfred."

"There will be nothing good about it if you continue to put unnecessary strain on your body. Now get down from there."

Nightwing sighed and lowered himself gently back into the wheelchair underneath the set of rings. "I'm just trying to get back in fighting form, Alfred."

The Englishman shot him a disapproving look as he finished setting down breakfast.

"I expect such stubbornness from Master Bruce. You are supposed to have more common sense, young man."

Dick wheeled over to the meal. The sight and smell of the food made his stomach growl. "The problem with common sense, Alfred, is that it's not so common." He picked up a piece of toast and began to eat.

"How droll." The butler poured him a glass of orange juice, freshly squeezed, of course.

"Hey," Dick said, popping a piece of kiwi in his mouth, "Did Barbara get in yet?"

"I'm afraid not, Master Dick," Alfred replied, noting with silent satisfaction that the young man's appetite was getting stronger each day, "I believe she stayed in Bludhaven last night. We won't see her until the afternoon, I expect."

Nightwing was quiet, chewing a mouthful of eggs thoughtfully.

_Well, that will give me a few more hours to figure out how to apologize to her._

As he sipped his orange juice, another problem presented itself.

_What _am_ I going to do about Helena?_

-----

Barbara awoke with a start.

Warm afternoon sunlight bathed her bedroom.

She glanced at the clock.

It was after two.

She cursed and practically leapt from her bed. She quickly stripped and charged into the bathroom. Ten minutes later, hair dripping wet, she padded over to her dresser and grabbed the first set of underwear she could get her hands on.

As she balanced awkwardly on one foot, attempting to put on her panties, her left thigh muscle, eager to remind her of the amateur kick-boxing match it had endured the previous night, gave way and she toppled into a nearby chair. The dark duffle bag she had put there last night slid to the floor with a thud.

"Crap!"

She crawled over to the duffle and opened it carefully.

_I didn't go tooth and nail with that psycho just to break the damn laptop now!_

Sitting cross-legged on the floor, Barbara inventoried the contents. When she had emptied the contents of Nightwing's safe the night before, she had merely swept everything into the bag, wanting to get out of there as quickly as possible. That was probably why she hadn't noticed the small felt box nestled among the laptop and various computer accessories.

She picked it up, heart beginning to beat faster.

It was a jewelry box.

The kind usually offered to someone while on one's knee.

Before she realized what she was doing, the box was open.

"Wow," she whispered in awe.

The ring was beautiful.

The diamond was in a solitary setting and at least a carat. While she was no gem cutter, Bruce had taught her the basics of appraisal in order to have a better understanding of the fencing process. Dick had probably paid close to five figures for it, even if he'd cut out the middle-man.

She held it up to the light. The diamond sparkled brilliantly, sending tiny rainbows across the ceiling and walls of her bedroom.

She couldn't help herself. Holding it by the thumb and index finger of her right hand, she slowly slipped the golden band onto her left ring finger.

It fit perfectly.

As Barbara admired the engagement ring, she wondered idly how Dick had obtained her ring size. _Not that it would have taken amazing detective work . . ._

Her hand looked . . . natural with the ring on it, as if she had been wearing it for years.

As she played with her hand, positioning it in various ways to allow the light to catch the diamond, her thoughts began to wander. Memories began to take form in her mind's eye.

A particularly fond one bubbled to the surface . . .

-----

Despite the hot chocolate, Barbara's body still retained the chill from Mr. Freeze's chambers on the abandoned oil rig. Her teeth chattered slightly as she held the warm cup to her lips. Daddy had been kind enough to stoke the fire in the fireplace before he had left to deal with the red tape of the whole, crazy fiasco.

Barbara knew he had wanted to stay with her and make sure his precious daughter was indeed all right after her harrowing abduction, but duty called and she did her best to alleviate his guilt by smiling and telling him she was okay.

Even if she wasn't.

She shivered again, this time from the thought of the involuntary surgery that sicko Freeze and his accomplice had almost succeeded in inflicting on her.

The doorbell rang.

She checked the clock. Who could be at the door this time of night?

Carrying a down comforter draped over her body, she answered the door.

"Hello, Babs."

"Dick!"

He hugged her impulsively and she gladly returned the embrace.

Moments later, they sat together in front of the fire.

"How about another blanket, Babs?" Dick asked, a concerned look in his eye.

The chill still hadn't abated, even if most of it was from her emotional state now. The old insulation of James Gordon's house didn't help matters, either.

"I think I'll be okay. How is Mr. Wayne doing?"

Dick got up to put another log on the blaze and sat back down next to her.

"He's downtown right now. Believe or not, Batman dropped Mr. Freeze's wife at the Waynetech cryogenics lab. There's a good chance they can finally cure her. Bruce is overseeing the technicians."

"Mr. Wayne is a good man."

Dick smiled mysteriously, "You don't know the half of it."

They sat together in silence for a long time, watching the fire slowly flicker and pop. As the almost hypnotic movement of the flames danced across her eyes, she realized Dick's presence made her feel secure for the first time in days.

He also made her feel warm.

"You gave me quite a scare, Barbara," Dick said suddenly.

She turned to look at him, but he was staring straight ahead.

"I thought maybe I'd lost you," he continued quietly, voice barely above a whisper.

His genuine concern touched her deeply.

"You're not getting rid of me that easily," she teased, leaning over to put her head on his shoulder. He, in turn, looped an arm around her. She could tell he was still troubled.

"What is it, Dick? What's wrong?"

"I should have stopped him."

"Who?" she jerked her head back to look at him, "Mr. Freeze?"

"Yes," he replied fiercely, "There's no way he should have been able to kidnap you right in front of me."

"Dick, come on!" she exclaimed, incredulous, "He had an ice gun, superhuman strength, _and_ two giant polar bears! I think you did quite well, all things considered."

He made no reply.

"Besides," she continued, trying to cajole him out of his dark mood, "it's not like you're Batman. And heck, even _he_ had Robin to back him up when he rescued me."

Dick sighed.

She decided to take matters into her own hands. She reached up, gently cradled his head and turned his face towards her own.

"I thought you were very brave, Dick."

She lowered her eyelids slightly, voice becoming seductive.

"And I think you deserve a reward."

Their lips met.

-----

Barbara smiled.

_Poor Daddy. His precious little girl was deflowered on his favorite couch._

She sighed and stood up, still wearing the ring.

Things were so much simpler back then. She hadn't even known Dick was Robin. But she did know he was a kind, brave, and loyal man. The kind of man she could see a wonderful future with.

She looked at the ring again.

Obviously, Dick had felt the same way about her.

It was only a few months after that wonderful night that everything had gone so wrong.

She remembered the roller coaster of emotions she experienced on that fateful evening.

Shock that Bruce Wayne and Richard Grayson were Batman and Robin.

Awe at the stark majesty of the Bat Cave.

Embarrassment that Bruce knew she was Batgirl, and probably had known for some time.

Excitement as Batman allowed her to accompany him in the Batmobile.

Sheer terror as Joker knocked her from the roof, followed by pure joy when Dick saved her from certain death.

Horror when Dick leveled Bruce with a single vicious blow, fueled by years of frustration and anger.

Regret and sadness as the man she loved disappeared into the night.

The same emotions she experienced now as she stared at the shiny avatar of What Could Have Been on her finger.

Finally, she took it off. As she put the ring back in its box and resumed dressing, Barbara Gordon made a silent vow.

It was time for her and Mr. Grayson to have a long talk.


	19. A Huntress in Gotham

It was chillier in Gotham than in Bludhaven. She assumed dip in temperature had more to do with Gotham's extensive waterfront rather than the fact it was about a hundred miles farther north. Gotham was practically an island, after all.

She studied the map in front of her carefully. She felt significantly out of her element. Normally she wouldn't have dared any vigilantism in an unfamiliar city. Not without several weeks of careful study, anyway. But two factors had changed her mind.

First, she had been to Gotham several times in her life. Believe it or not, Gotham was a bit of a tourist spot to many inhabitants of Bludhaven. It was a relatively close, cosmopolitan city, perfect for a daytrip or a weekend getaway. Of course, Metropolis or New York were more desirable destinations if money wasn't an issue, but Gotham was cheap. And cheap was important to one trying to live on a school teacher's salary.

So she knew the basics of Gotham, including which areas tourists should avoid.

Areas like the one she now had under surveillance from the roof of a five story building.

The second reason was personal.

Dick had never called her back.

She watched the elderly couple make their way down the block. It was pretty late for them to be out, especially in this neighborhood, but she quickly realized it was the first of the month. They had probably just gotten their Social Security checks.

Empty stomachs often made people take risks.

Both the man and woman clutched plastic grocery bags close to their bodies as they slowly walked from streetlight to streetlight, nervously watching both sides of the avenue.

Neither of them saw the predators stalking them for behind.

She counted four of the gang members, all of them young enough to have been in one of her ninth grade classes. She smiled grimly. In Bludhaven, the gang bangers often weren't old enough to shave. Gotham appeared to be little different.

The young men picked up the pace, brandishing their weapons: a knife, lead pipe, baseball bat, and, in the hands of the one she assumed was the leader, a handgun. She leveled her crossbow at that one, a pretty large youth with ridiculously spiked green hair.

The old man and his wife finally noticed their peril. The woman screamed, bags dropped in panic as her husband made a futile attempt to ward the criminals off.

She deftly fired her quarrel, leaping off the building as the green-haired punk roared in pain, hand pierced perfectly through the palm.

Her feet nearly broke the back of the pipe-wielder as she landed on top of him. A wicked kick to the face shattered the nose of the one with the knife, while she smashed her fist into the leader, taking him down for the count.

The punk with the bat attempted to break open her skull.

She ducked to the side, telescoping her battle staff in the process. She then struck his forearm quickly, smiling at the sound of snapping bones.

The gang member wailed like a little girl.

She brought the staff up hard between his legs and raised the scream several octaves.

Pain exploded from her right thigh.

She spun to face her attacker.

Apparently, the one with the pipe wasn't completely out of the fight.

Her eyes narrowed as she spun the staff quickly in her hands.

"I'm already in a bad mood, asshole, and you just made it worse."

She took her time, breaking no less than five bones before finally knocking her opponent out. A couple more kicks for good measure, and she was off, back on the rooftops and waiting for another opportunity to raise some hell. The elderly couple looked on in shock at the carnage sprawled out before them in the street, bloody and twitching.

_Dick _really_ should have called me back._

-----

"Ah! Mistress Barbara! So good to have you back."

"Hello, Alfred," Barbara said as she walked into the kitchen, dragging more than a few pieces of luggage, "Sorry I missed dinner."

"Nonsense," the butler huffed, "I just put away the meal. Just give me a moment to take your bags to your room and I'll heat it up for you."

"That's okay, Alfred, I'm perfectly capable of using a microwave."

"Absolutely not!" Alfred insisted, "Those things are barbaric. They dry out the food and rob it of much of its flavor."

Barbara sighed.

"Fine, I'll just take these upstairs, then."

The Englishman promptly went to her side and picked up two of the suitcases.

"Allow me, Mistress Barbara. I insist."

"Alfred, please, I can---"

"You are a guest in this house, young lady," Alfred said in a tone that broached no argument, "And you will be treated accordingly."

The butler began to leave the room, heading for the stairs.

"Besides," he added, just before he disappeared through the doorway, "There's someone in the library waiting to speak with you."

Barbara poured herself a cup of coffee, pot shaking slightly in her hand.

_Three guesses who _that_ is._

She took a deep gulp and set the cup down. Then she grabbed the backpack holding the laptop and left the kitchen.

-----

The view through the binoculars, in combination with his ability to read lips, told him most of what he needed to know. A few minutes monitoring the police band told him the rest.

Someone was thrashing various lowlifes in Gotham. Some one with a high degree of martial skill and little concern about the necessary level of force. No fatalities so far, but that could quickly change.

He fired off a grapple and swung down towards the parked Batmobile. He pushed a button on his utility belt as he descended, and the canopy of the vehicle slid back silently. He landed in the driver's seat, rewound the grapple, and took off down the alley.

He kept an ear on the police scanner while keying the latest data into the onboard computer, allowing the auto-pilot to handle the mundane task of driving.

A part of him was glad to have this new mystery.

The past several days had forced him far deeper into his Wayne persona than he would have liked. All those years cultivating the vapid playboy role worked against him when Bruce Wayne actually had to accomplish something significant. Lucius would be convinced eventually, but the Board was a much tougher nut to crack. In some ways, he regretted letting WayneTech go public all those years ago while he was consumed with training to avenge his parents. But the company had grown greatly during that time, and the millions he inherited became billions in a little over a decade. Billions he put to good use in his nocturnal crusade.

A police bulletin interrupted his thoughts.

The vigilante had just taken down two potential muggers, breaking both the legs of one of them in the process. According to the victim and sole witness, her savior was female and armed with a crossbow and quarterstaff. The site of the incident was only a few miles away.

He took manual control of the Batmobile and made a sharp right turn.

It was time for Batman to meet this new crime fighter.

And put her out of business.

-----

Barbara had always liked the library. Despite the impressive size of the room, all of the expensive leather bound tomes on the shelves gave the chamber a warm, cozy feel. The marble-lined fireplace, plush furniture, expensive paintings, and oriental rugs didn't hurt either.

She paused at the door, spotting Dick reading in a chair by the hearth. A low fire crackled nearby, more for show than real heat. Alfred wouldn't dream of letting any houseguest feel discomfort. The thermostat was no doubt set at a comfortable level.

He looked good. All those days of bed rest and top-flight medical care had done wonders. No doubt he'd be back on the streets in mere weeks rather than months. He was still a bit out of it, however, as he had no yet noticed her. But perhaps the Manor was one of the few places where he allowed his guard to come down.

"So they finally let you out of the Cave, huh?"

Dick looked up and smiled. "Temporary parole, I'm sure," He gestured at the wheelchair parked a few feet away, "Alfred's going to wheel me back down to the med-lab soon."

"Here you go," she handed him the backpack and sat down in a chair facing his, "One laptop and sundry other items, as requested."

"Thanks, Babs."

An awkward silence descended.

Clearly uncomfortable and more than a little embarrassed, Dick finally broke it.

"Listen, I'm sorry about Helena."

"Your girlfriend has one hell of a chip on her shoulder."

"She's not my girlfriend," he replied quickly, "At least, not anymore. She's an ex."

Barbara was secretly pleased by this admission, but the incident was still raw for her emotionally.

"What happened? You make such a perfect couple."

That last bit sort of slipped out, and she immediately wished she hadn't said it.

"Come on, Barbara. Don't be like that."

"Don't be like what?"

"Jealous. It's not like we're a couple . . . anymore."

The sight of the ring came to her mind's eye.

"Hey, no problem, Dick. We're both adults here." She forced herself to say.

She looked away from him and stared at the dancing flames. When she didn't reply after a few minutes, he began to look through the backpack, eager to have something, anything else, to focus on. He opened the laptop and began to access his files when she spoke again.

"I found it, you know."

"Found what?" He said absently. He was beginning to switch to Business mode, checking programs and updating information. There was a lot to catch up on.

"The ring."

------------------------------------------

Author's Note: Hey, guys. Entering the home stretch now. I'm aiming for 25 chapters and I've finally figured out how it's going to end. Thanks for all the reviews, even if they seem to have tapered off lately. Give an author some encouragement so I can finally complete this tale.


	20. Realization

He watched the purple-clad vigilante carefully from his perch on top of the fire-escape. Her skills were impressive, if a bit over-aggressive. He'd been the same way when he'd started out, well over a decade ago. It had taken him a few years to depersonalize the process, to keep it professional. To use the proper level of force to get the job done, no more, no less.

Either this Huntress---as she apparently called herself---was still relatively new to the game, or she simply didn't care.

Watching her smash a would-be rapist's face into a brick wall made him lean more toward the latter. When the woman shot the man's accomplice in the groin with a crossbow bolt, he finally decided to intervene.

He leapt from the rusting fire-escape and spread his cape to slow his descent.

The Huntress spun towards him just as he touched down and fired.

He dodged the bolt smoothly, although it did tear a hole in his cape.

She dropped the crossbow and quickly brandished a bo staff, spinning it effectively as she advanced carefully.

"About time you showed up, Batman. What the hell took you so long?"

Batman frowned.

This was certainly not the reception he expected.

-----

"I don't recall the ring being on the list, Barbara."

Barbara sighed. _That's right, Dick, try to buy time instead of dealing with the issue._

"I didn't take it on purpose, Dick. I simply stuffed everything from your hidey-hole into the bag. After that title fight with your ex, I just wanted to get out of there."

"Look, I already apologized about that. Helena can be a bit . . . wild sometimes."

"Well, I'm sure that came in handy in the bedroom."

She regretted the comment as soon as it left her mouth.

"Barbara. . ."

"Look," She looked him straight in the eye, noticing he had set aside the laptop and was giving her his full attention, "Can we cut through all this crap for once and just talk to each other? We used to be so close."

The young man was silent for awhile, staring into the iridescent flames of the fireplace.

She was about to get up and storm out of the room, nasty remark on her lips, when he finally spoke again.

"Okay, Barbara. Let's be perfectly honest with each other for once."

She began to reply, but he cut her off.

"No, let me talk. Then you can have your say, okay?"

She nodded. _What's he up to now?_

He paused for a moment, looking back to the hearth.

"I've spent the past three or four years doing everything I could not to be like Bruce, and yet, when it comes to you, I find myself making the same mistakes he does. He's let that one moment of his past define everything he does and is, and here I am, allowing that one night prevent me from doing what I should have done long ago."

He looked back at her.

"It'd be ironic, if it wasn't so damn sad," With clear effort, the young man got out of his chair and walked over to her.

"Dick! You shouldn't be---"

"Shhh," he got down on his knees in front of her, until their faces were only inches apart, "Let me finish, Barbara."

Once again she found herself nodding, heart racing.

"After all we've been through lately," he continued, warm breath gently tickling her skin, "You moving to Bludhaven. Almost getting killed by the Thanagarians. Everything. I've come to a decision. I don't want to end up like Bruce, even though he's the greatest man I've ever known. I don't want to be alone."

His eyes seemed to bore into her, a fierce intensity building within them. She recognized it at once. Want. Need. Desire. And something much, much deeper.

"I still love you, Barbara. And I think I always will."

-----

_Damn, he's good!_

She lashed out again with the staff, only to catch the slightest bit of cape before her opponent counter-attacked, forcing her once more on the defensive.

"Why have you come to Gotham?" Batman demanded, nearly taking her head off with a quick strike.

"That's for me to know, and you to find out."

She swept out a leg, hoping to catch him off guard.

He leapt over the attack easily, throwing more of his damn Batarangs at her.

She barely managed to block the projectiles with the staff, leaving her midsection open in the process. A solid kick to the stomach propelled her across the narrow alley and into a grease-stained wall. She had somehow kept her weapon as she unsteadily got back to her feet.

_Well, now I know how Dick got to be such a good fighter._

"I don't have time for games, Huntress. Tell me what I want to know."

"Don't act all high and mighty with me, Batman. If you were doing your job, I wouldn't have been so busy this evening."

The white lenses on his cowl narrowly. She had touched a nerve.

_Maybe that'll make him sloppy._

Next thing she knew, she was on the ground, disarmed, with Batman on top of her.

_Maybe not._

"Talk. Now." His breath brushed her ear.

"Okay, okay! You've made your point."

He let her up gradually, eying her coolly.

"I've come here to see Nightwing."

"You're in the wrong city. Nightwing's in Bludhaven."

"Come on, Batman. Where do you think I _came_ from?"

He cocked his head slightly.

"Look, Nightwing and I go way back. He told me you're taking care of him while he recovers from the invasion."

She was pleased to see him somewhat surprised, although he recovered almost immediately.

"He's never mentioned you."

"There's a lot he doesn't tell you, Batman. Who can blame him, after the way you've treated him all these years."

Batman was silent.

She was becoming impatient. She bent over to pick up her weapons, noticing the approaching sirens for the first time.

"I didn't come here to cramp your style. Bludhaven has more than enough scum to go around. I just need to see Nightwing."

He just continued to stare impassively at her. _Who the hell is _HE_ to judge me?_

But she bit back her anger, reminding herself of the bigger picture. Gotham was a huge city. There was almost no way she'd ever find Dick on her own, especially since Batman just proved he could best her in combat.

So she swallowed her pride with difficulty and approached the Dark Knight once again.

"Look, I just want to see if Richard is okay. We have a history. You can knock me out or whatever. Just take me to him."

A police car pulled up to the entrance of the alley. She glanced at it briefly.

A second later, everything went black.

-----

She had forgotten what a wonderful kisser he was.

And she was currently spending several minutes remembering.

_Whoa! Whoa! What the heck is going on here?_

"Dick," she mouthed when they both came up for air, "Dick, wait a minute. This is crazy."

He paused, ardor briefly cooling. "What's crazy?"

She gently pushed him away, trying to regain some shred of self-control. She began re-buttoning her shirt. He sat back on the floor, bemused expression on his face. He absently wiped some of her lipstick off his cheek.

"Look, we're not teen-agers anymore. A make out session isn't going to set everything right."

"It's worth a shot, Babs." He smirked.

_Why does he have to look SO cute when I'm mad at him._

"Can't you take this seriously?"

"I am serious," his tone changed, all teasing left behind, "I just declared my love for you, for crying out loud. Are you telling me you don't feel the same?"

Suddenly, she was on the defensive.

_Oh, crap. Maybe we should just go back to the kissing._

"Ahem."

They both looked at the doorway.

Alfred Pennyworth stood there, not quite concealing his amusement at their awkward situation. Both of them were nearly as red as the nearby fire.

"Master Richard, there is a call for you below."

"Can't it wait, Alfred? I'm kind of in the middle of something here."

Barbara found herself nodding in agreement.

"It's from Master Bruce. I'm afraid he's quite insistent."

"So what else is new? Tell him I'll get back to him later."

Alfred frowned, obviously hesitant to press the issue.

"It concerns someone named the Huntress, Master Richard."

Dick froze.

"Aw, crap."

He gingerly got to his feet again and quickly sat down in the wheelchair Alfred pulled up to him. He allowed the butler to push him past her, gently touching her arm along the way.

"I'll get this sorted out, okay? Please stay here. We're not done yet, right?"

He stopped Alfred at the doorway and called back.

"Right?"

Barbara looked over at him, heart still pounding.

"Right."

She stared at the empty doorway for several minutes, mind trying futilely to process what had just happened. Euphoria was trumping intellect at the moment, so she quickly gave up.

Instead she stared at the fire, goofy smile plastered to her face.

"He still loves me," she whispered to no one in particular.

---------------------------------------------------------------------

Author's Note: Sorry it took so long to update. I really don't like to rush things, especially if my muse isn't in the mood to help me. Anyone catch Nightwing's cameo on JLU last week? Pretty sweet. Now, if only Babs could make an appearance.


	21. Yes

_That can't possibly be a dinosaur, can it?_

This first thought raced through Huntress' mind as her eyes focused on what appeared to be a Tyrannosaurus rex staring down upon her. An instant later, the dull ache from the back of her head registered and she realized what had happened to her.

_That sonovabitch knocked me out._

_And now I'm . . .Where the hell am I?_

She lifted her head slightly and took in her surroundings. Giant playing cards and an even larger penny vied for her attention, but she quickly dismissed them as irrelevant and focused on what lay beyond..

_. . . Holy shit. I'm in a cave. _

She spotted the Batmobile, the biggest mainframe computer she had ever seen, and various familiar types of training equipment.

_I'm in the frickin' Batcave._

"You're awake."

She recognized the voice immediately and tensed up in surprise.

By the time she finished berating herself, however, she had managed to spring from the table she had been placed on and assumed a defensive stance. Instinctively she reached down for a hand crossbow that was no longer there.

Batman stared at her expressionless..

"I have your weapons, and I'll assume you've realized that you are no match for me."

He attempted to stare her down, eyes hidden between his dark cowl.

_I'll be damned if l let him intimidate me._

"Why don't you take a picture?" she said mockingly, "It'll last longer."

If she hoped to piss him off, she was disappointed.

It was barely perceptible, but the corners of his mouth raised ever so slightly.

_I can't believe this. I insult him and he SMILES at me? _

_No wonder Dick is so screwed up. I've only been with him a few minutes and he's already messing with my head._

"The only reason you are here instead of enjoying the hospitality of Gotham's Finest

is because Nightwing vouched for you."

Her eyes widened, "Where is he?"

"He'll be here shortly."

Silence descended like a shroud between them, and seemed to last a very long time. She was becoming uncomfortable despite her bravado. Dick had often described how disconcerting the Dark Knight's presence could be, but it was nothing compared to the real life experience.

Surprisingly, Batman was the one to finally speak again.

"I did a little research while you were . . . out."

"So?" _You gonna to keep rubbing my face in that or what?_

"You've made quite a bit of headway in the past couple of years. Taken down some significant criminals in Bludhaven. Even a crime lord or two."

"Yeah, well, a girl's gotta have a hobby."

"You're a little sloppy, though."

"Oh? How so?" she said defiantly.

_Would he like it better if I wore a Bat suit?_

"You waste too much energy. Do too much damage."

"Hey! You can't tell me those bastards don't deserve it."

"That is irrelevant. If you continue to use excessive force, you are going to kill someone."

"And would that be so bad?"

The words were barely out of her mouth when somehow he was right there, eyes boring into her. This time, his glare cut right through her, forcing her to look away.

"Yes. It would."

His low voice cut through the cool stillness of the cavern.

For the first time in a very long time, Helena Bertinelli felt a trace of fear.

"Am I interrupting something?"

Both heroes looked towards the source of the new voice.

Nightwing smiled as he wheeled himself into the Cave.

"Because I can always come back later."

-----

Diana was tired.

Things were so much easier when they had the Watchtower. Just about anywhere on Earth was only an hour or two away via Javelin. But now that they were no longer in orbit a couple hundred miles above, distance had become a factor. Japan was six hours away from Gotham, even by Invisible Jet. And this latest emergency had sent her there just this morning.

12 hours alone in a plane was not her idea of fun.

It gave her too much time to think about things she really didn't want to think about.

Like a certain Dark Knight.

All she wanted to do now was take a long, hot shower and good to bed. She had parked her plane on the grounds of the manor; there really wasn't room for it in the Cave and it wasn't like anyone was going to see it. As she made her way towards her room, she passed the library.

She paused.

_Might as well see how badly time has altered _The Odyssey. _It'll be interesting to see how they portray Circe._

Before she entered the room she heard a strange sound from near the fireplace.

A sound most out of place here in dour Wayne Manor.

A giggle.

Diana was halfway convinced she must have imagined it, when she heard the sound again, followed by a contented sigh.

"Hello?"

"Oh! I'm sorry!" Batgirl's head appeared from behind the couch, "Hi."

"Somebody's in a good mood," Diana remarked, walking across the room and taking a seat in a nearby chair.

"Oh, yeah, you could say that," The young woman laughed softly, and curled back up on the couch, watching the fire slowly die down.

Apparently no further information was forthcoming. One of the hardest things Diana had had to get used to was being treated as anything but a trusted sister by other women. The sisterhood she shared with all the others on Themiscyra was absent here in Man's World.

"Well, I don't mean to pry," Diana got up and began perusing the shelves while she made her way to Homer's section of the library. Bruce's clear respect for classic literature was just one more reason why she found him so intriguing. After a few minutes, she found the leather bound tome she was looking for and began to leave.

"Diana?"

She turned, "Yes, Batgirl?"

Batgirl paused, clearly conflicted.

Finally the young woman smiled, "You can call me Barbara."

"That's a lovely name."

"Thanks."

Sensing a connection forming, Diana delicately prodded once again.

"You seem very happy tonight, Barbara."

Barbara smiled widely. "Oh, there's no doubt about that. I'm just having a hard time believing it, that's all."

Diana approached again and leaned over the couch from behind. Barbara's attitude was infectious, and the Amazon found herself smiling.

"Well, don't keep me in suspense. What happened?"

"He finally came clean!" Barbara's eyes danced merrily, "He finally told me he loved me!"

Diana's smile vanished.

A horrible thought flashed through her mind.

"You mean Bruce---" She began to blurt out, before stopping abruptly.

Barbara stared at her.

And then began laughing hysterically.

Diana stood up awkwardly, unsure what to make of the red-haired woman literally writhing on the couch below her. The League member's cheeks began to color as she realized her assumption had been way off base.

"I'm guessing it wasn't Bruce, then." She said wryly.

"As if!" Barbara chortled, unable to continue as another wave of laugher convulsed through her. Finally, she began to get a hold of herself and wiped mirthful tears from her eyes.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry," she gasped. Then she swallowed hard, "It's just that you have no idea how badly that would have made me feel only a few days ago, but now I just don't care!"

She began to giggle again, and Diana began to wonder if the girl was mentally stable.

"I thought you and Bruce were---" she began, only to be cut off.

"No, I thought _you _and Bruce were---"

Barbara stopped and both women stared at each other.

Diana furled her brow in confusion.

"You've got me at a loss here, Barbara."

The younger woman smiled broadly and placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Nightwing, Diana. It was Nightwing."

She continued, becoming more and more giddy as she explained.

"We used to be together, long ago, but things kind of, well, they just kind of fell apart. And then he left and I began to fall for Bruce, but that wasn't working, so I left. Then we got captured by the Hawk people and I found out he was going to propose to me years ago before everything got screwed up, but he still had all this resentment, and I was still hung up on Bruce, and there was all this other stuff to complicate what should have been so simple. And then I met this crazy woman that I guess he had a relationship with---yuck, because she's a total skank---but none of that matters anymore because for once in our lives, we managed to cut through all of that . . . that crap, and just be honest with each other!"

Barbara took a breath, as Diana struggled to keep up.

"He still loves me, Diana! After all that we've been through!"

Diana couldn't help but smile.

"And you love him in return." She stated.

Barbara paused, seemingly staring through her.

Then she practically leaped up from the couch to hug her.

"You bet your sweet lasso I do!"

-----

"Can you give us a minute?"

Batman nodded curtly and walked towards the lower caverns where the Batboat was kept, "Make sure she doesn't leave the Cave."

_Yeah, okay. Did you forget I'm the one in the wheelchair?_

Huntress managed to wait a full five seconds after he left before rushing over to him.

He spread his arms for an embrace, but got a slap in the face instead.

"Prick!" she spat, "You never called me back."

"Take it easy, Helena," he said, rubbing his cheek, "I'm still convalescing here."

She cocked her head and looked at him appraisingly.

"You're looking pretty good for a guy in a coma."

"I tried to tell you that I was in good hands."

She reached out and plucked a red hair from his shoulder.

"And whose hands would those be? _Hers_?"

Dick sighed. _Man, where's a citywide emergency when you need one?_

"Helena, we're exes now, remember. What's with the jealousy?"

"Who says I'm jealous?" she sniffed, looking away, "And unless my memory fails me, you and I engaged in some pretty serious _undercover_ work just a few weeks before Tweety and his pals came to town."

"Things are different now, Helena. What we did, what we had, it was---"

"Meaningless? Just sex?"

"I was going to say _nice_. You were there for me in a dark time of my life, and I'll always be grateful for that. But that was a long time ago, and I'm a different person now."

"Oh, really?"

She gestured to their surroundings.

"It looks to me like your back to your old self, Boy Wonder. Is Daddy going to buy you your own Batmobile and make it all better?"

"That's a low blow, Helena." His own temper began to rise.

"Truth hurts, does it, Richard?" She bent over, placing her hands on the armrests of his chair so that they were face to face, "See if this rings a bell: _He manipulates you. Makes you think its something you wanted to do all along. That's how he works._ Your words, Richard, not mine."

Her voice echoed across the expanse of the Batcave.

He gritted his teeth and stared at her coolly.

"This. Has. Nothing. To do. With him."

He pushed her back firmly and then stood up.

"It seems like all my life I've been in his shadow. He took me in. He trained me. Hell, he even sent me to college. All of his molding, all of his wealth and influence. I could never seem to escape it. Add to that the fact that I could never seem to please him. It was like I was always a 12 year old kid who could never do anything right. He was the father who was never proud of me."

He looked at her, face firm despite the clear anger in his words, "When you and I first met, I was a wreck. You helped me. Never doubt that. But eventually, I worked through my demons, and eventually I came to let them go."

He pointed at her, "Maybe someday, you'll be able to do the same."

Huntress scowled, "If you're so high and mighty now, why are you back here?"

"Because it doesn't matter anymore. All that time he spent together, and you still don't fully understand me."

He walked a few painful steps towards her, then gently reached out and brushed a few strands of hair out of her eyes.

"I was never afraid of Batman. I was afraid of _becoming_ Batman."

He cupped her chin and looked deeply at her.

"But that's no going to happen now. I finally did the one thing he's never been able to do. I opened myself up completely to another person. Someone I'm going to spent the rest of my life with. Someone I'm going to be able to grow old with. Someone to share my sorrow and joy. Someone who will catch me when I fall and hold me up when I stumble."

He smiled, "Someone who will never let me become like him."

Huntress knocked his hand away and backed up.

"Well, I certainly hope you and Miss perfect live happily ever after."

He knew she was too proud to cry, just as he knew she was hurting.

"Helena, I truly hope you can get past what's haunting you. You're a strong woman."

"Don't you dare patronize me, you bastard."

"I wouldn't, Helena, that's _his_ game, not mine. I have far too much respect for you. But as your . . . friend, I think you need help."

"I don't need your _friendship_." She managed to make it sound like a dirty word, "And I sure as hell don't need your pity."

Dick was beginning to tire. He had said his piece. It was up to her to accept it or not. Either way, Barbara was waiting for him upstairs. He carefully lowered himself back into the wheelchair.

"You'll find your path someday, Helena. I have faith in you. I just hope it doesn't take you as long as it did for me."

He began to wheel himself back to the elevator. He had just pushed the recall button, when she spoke out again.

"I think I liked the old, bitter Nightwing better."

He spun the wheelchair around to look at her. Her back was to him, but she stood proudly.

"People change, Helena."

The doors opened behind him, and he reversed himself into the elevator.

"Do you ---" her voice was barely above a whisper, "Do you really think there's a path out there for me? Perhaps even someone to share it with?"

He placed a hand on the doorway to prevent it from closing.

She turned to look at him, eyes vulnerable for the first time in the years he had known her.

He smiled kindly.

"There's no question about it."

She smiled back, eyes glistening.

"Good-bye, Helena."

She nodded.

He let the door slide shut.

-----

She stood there in the silent semi-darkness, lost in thought.

For a very long time.

Finally, she sensed his presence and turned.

"Is this how you kicked you kicks? Eavesdropping?" Some much emotion was running through her, and Batman's return gave her a much needed target.

"It is time for you to go."

She very badly wanted to beat the crap out of something, but she didn't think her ego could take another defeat at his hands, so she shrugged.

"I'm done here anyway. Besides, all this Batshit is ruining my boots."

Once again, he smiled as he gestured towards the Batmobile.

'What? Your not gonna knock me out this time?"

He held up a blindfold.

"Oh, kinky." She snatched it from his hands and deftly tied it around her eyes, "Sure you don't wanna play with the Batcuffs while you're at it?"

_That's right, Helena, keep up the sarcasm. You can cry your eyes out once you get home._

They rode in silence for a long time.

Nearly an hour later (she guessed), the car stopped.

"You can take off the blindfold now."

She removed the cloth as the cockpit of the vehicle opened.

Batman handed her weapons back to you.

"You have a lot of potential."

"Thanks," she hopped out of the car, "You have a lot of issues."

He tossed her something else, and she caught it without thinking.

It appeared to be a com-link of some kind.

"What's this?"

"It's a communication device. I'll be in touch."

"What, are you asking me out on a date?"

"Hardly."

The cockpit began to close.

"We might have need of you in the future."

The cockpit closed and the Batmobile took off.

"We?"

She stared after it for a minute, and then turned away.

It would be a long trip back to Bludhaven.

-----

He rolled back to the library, only to find it empty.

"Barbara?"

A million unwanted thoughts formed.

Has she left? Had she changed her mind? Did she not feel the same way?

"Barbara?" he called out, louder.

Someone grabbed his wheelchair from behind and gently turned it around.

"Shhhh, you'll wake Alfred."

Her warm breath tickled his ear and all was right with the world again.

She wheeled him past the Cave entrance and towards the main staircase.

"Where are we going, Babs?"

"You'll see."

She stopped at the base of the stairs.

'There we are." She walked in front of him and grabbed his hands, "Up we go."

"Barbara, I don't think I can climb stairs."

"Don't worry," she pulled him up and kissed him gently, "I'll help you."

She looped his arm around her shoulders and guided him to the rail.

She grinned at him.

"Ready?"

"Do I have a choice?" he smiled.

"I'll take that as a yes."

A few minutes later they reached the top.

"Should I go get the chair?"

"I guess so," he replied, a bit winded, "My old room's in the East wing."

"Oh, no, Mr. Grayson. You have different sleeping arrangements tonight."

Realization dawned.

"Barbara!" he nearly gasped, "I'm in no condition to---"

She delicately put one finger on his lips, but pressed firmly.

"I said I'd help you, silly."

Then she smirked.

He allowed himself to be lead to her room.

She guided him to the bed, where he sat down gratefully. She quickly went back to the door and closed it quietly. Then she came back to the bed and sat down next to him, cupping his hand in hers.

"Do you remember a certain question you never asked me a long time ago?"

"Yes," he answered simply, heart pounding.

"Perhaps you'd care to ask it again?"

His mouth became dry. It was too good to be true.

"Well?" she prompted, smiling at him, teasingly.

He then realized he didn't have it with him.

"I, uh, I don't know where---"

"Shhhh. It's okay," She squeezed his hand, "Just ask."

He looked her in the eyes, and saw nothing but warmth, acceptance, and love reflected there.

"Barbara, will you marry me?"

She held up her left hand.

The ring somehow sparkled in the dimness of the room.

"Yes."

She kissed him gently, almost chastely.

She drew back and stood up.

And began to unbutton her shirt.

"Now, then, Mr. Grayson. How about a preview of the honeymoon?"

All he could do was nod.


	22. Meetings

He glided through the murky, polluted depths of Gotham bay with some degree of disgust. Although he of all people should be accustomed to the filth and refuse surface-dwellers continued to vomit upon his domain, righteous indignation began to fester within him.

_Can these people truly be so ignorant of the consequences of their actions?_

He swam past the ruined hulk of a police van riddled with bullets and paused.

_Is this how they treat rightful authority on the surface?_

He hovered over the rusting vehicle and pondered his recent course of action for what must have been the hundredth time since Superman convinced him to join the League. Was he doing the right thing?

Mera was convinced he was, although many of his advisors had been somewhat less supportive.

The League had assisted both him and Atlantis as a whole in the past, and relations with the surface nations had begun to slowly improve. Still, he had kept the rest of the world at arms length, maintaining a mostly isolationist policy.

The Thanagarian invasion had changed everything.

Although he and his forces had managed to keep the aliens from conquering the capital, several of his smaller cities had fallen under the yoke of the extra-terrestrials. Hundreds of his finest had been lost in battle, and thousands suffered under the subjugation of the winged warriors. Mighty Atlantis had been caught unprepared and had paid a high price indeed.

He was determined never to let that happen again.

Being a part of the new Justice League was a step in the right direction. Hopefully, it would also foster better relations with the humans. At the very least, being a member of the new League would allow him to keep a better eye on potential threats to his people. As counterintuitive as it was to his nature, sometimes diplomacy was the best way to accomplish one's goals, no matter how unsavory it may appear.

A small fish swam out of the van's broken windshield, detected his presence, and immediately darted back into the shelter of the vehicle.

He smiled. Even in this manmade debris, the ocean finds her uses.

_Perhaps this is a good omen._

The King of the Seven Seas continued on, picking up speed.

He really shouldn't be late for such an important meeting.

---

Alfred Pennyworth stood at attention as Aquaman emerged from the dark waters near the docking bay for the Batboat. Despite the unruly locks and the fact he was bare-chested, the butler immediately perceived a regal bearing in the Atlantean.

"Welcome to Wayne Manor, your Highness," the Englishman spoke crisply, "We are honored by your presence. Please accept this humble token on behalf of Master Wayne and his household."

He held forward a luxurious cloak, made of green silk.

Aquaman allowed most of the water to drip off of him before accepting the gift.

"My thanks, er—"

"Alfred Pennyworth at your service, your Highness."

The butler bowed curtly.

"Thank you, Alfred. Your manners would be at home in my own court."

"You are too kind, your Highness," Alfred said smoothly, pushing the button to open the elevator, "If you would follow me, I will take you to the others."

"Has everyone arrived?"

"I believe they are still waiting for that young fellow in crimson."

---

"Where is that red-headed idiot?" Jon Stewart demanded.

Superman shrugged, "You know Wally."

"Fastest man alive, my ass!"

Wonder Woman placed a comforting hand on the Green Lantern's arm, "Relax, Jon, he'll get here. He may be late, but he'd never miss a League meeting."

The former Marine continued to grumble under his breath, but nodded curtly.

_Poor Jon, _the Amazon mused, _He's still hurting from Shayera's treachery. _

She looked around the room, taking in the serious faces. Batman's grim visage was the same as always, but his dour outlook seemed to be mirrored on the other three members as well.

_We all are._

She stared at the empty chair where Hawkgirl should have been seated. A position which would now be filled by Aquaman. Under normal circumstances, having the King of the Seas join the team would be a cause for celebration, although she was uncertain if Jon would agree. The Green Lantern and the Sea King didn't quite see eye to eye.

Diana sighed. _Things are truly never going to be the same again._

"I have him," J'onn announced, "He'll be here in a few minutes. He just has to drop Mirror Master off at the authorities."

"About time," Jon muttered, eyes flashing green in annoyance.

"Alright then," Bruce stated, "Alfred's told me Aquaman just arrived, so we can get things started. Hopefully the world can stay out of trouble for a few hours so we can get some work done."

"I still don't see why all of us have to be here. I'm not much for logistics," Green Lantern grumbled.

"Neither is the Flash, but that's not the point," Batman countered, "Part of the agenda today is recruitment. If we truly want to expand the League, all of us have to do our part to get the proper candidates."

"Okay, okay. Let's get on with it. I have to meet with the Corps on Oa in 48 hours," the black man sighed, "And here I thought my meeting days were over once I left the military."

The door to the meeting room opened and Alfred stepped in, "May I present, King Arthur, Lord of Atlantis and Protector of the Seven Seas."

Green Lantern put his head down on the table and groaned.

Diana stifled a giggled.

_Poor Jon, this just isn't his day._

_---_

_Today is a good day._

Nightwing free-falled another twenty stories before he launched his grapple. It caught neatly on a piece of masonry and swung him in a graceful arc towards a neighboring rooftop. At the apex of his swing, the vigilante released the grapple's hold, tucked into a ball, and landed perfectly on the lower building.

All without the slightest hint of pain.

_A very good day._

All of his days seemed to be good lately, starting with a particularly wonderful evening a little over a month ago in Wayne Manor of all places. An evening whose activities he repeated with a certain fiancé of his on a fairly regular basis.

Fiancé.

Now _that_ was taking some getting used to.

And not just for the two of them. While Alfred and Jim Gordon had been unabashedly delighted at the concept of Barbara and him getting married, Bruce was clearly caught off guard, although he had immediately insisted on paying for the wedding. But things became awkward between the three of them, and Dick was glad when they returned to Bludhaven a couple weeks later.

Now all they had to do was wait for Barbara to sell her place and they would live together until they got married. Of course, they hadn't set a date yet, but they had plenty of time. The hard part was over; the rest was just minor details.

He and Barbara were going to be together for the rest of their lives.

He smiled, preparing to dive off the building.

_Why the hell did I wait so long?_

_---_

"Are we done yet?"

Green Lantern tilted his head and looked at the Flash in disbelief.

"First, you come late. Then you spend your time here doodling, when you're not in the kitchen stealing food, that is. And now you're complaining?"

Flash shrugged, smiling goofily.

"Why don't we move on to recruitment, gentlemen," Diana offered, changing the subject before Jon began to inflict bodily harm on Wally.

"Good idea," Superman concurred, "I think my cousin, Supergirl, is ready."

"There's a shock." Jon muttered under his breath.

Diana kicked him gently under the table.

"The blond babe in the mini-skirt?" Flash exclaimed, "I'll second that!"

Clark cocked an eyebrow at the younger hero.

Flash gulped, "Ah, I mean, she'd be a great asset to the team. You can never have enough Kryptonians, I always say."

"I agree," Batman added, "Kara has proven herself on many occasions, most recently during the Thanagarian invasion. Are there any objections?"

No one spoke up.

"Good. One down. Next?"

"I nominate Dr. Fate," Aquaman said, "We need some specialists in the mystical arena, especially with the loss of Hawkgirl's Nth metal."

An awkward silence descended upon the mention of Shayera.

Diana noticed the pain reflected in Jon's eyes, and decided to speak up.

Surprisingly, Bruce beat her to it.

"That's a good idea. Magic can be problematic, not to mention unpredictable."

The Dark Knight paused for the briefest of moments, almost as if he was hesitant to continue. "I have an old friend who may be of use. Her name is Zatanna. She's not quite in Fate's league, but she's capable enough."

It was Diana's turn to raise her eyebrows.

"An old friend, huh?"

"Her father trained me in escape artistry," He said simply.

_Now that's a story I need to hear more about._

"Both of them sound fine," Superman stated before she could continue her interrogation, "Who else?"

"Oh! I've got one!" Flash shouted, "My buddy Ralph!"

"_Ralph?_" Green Lantern snorted, "That's his code name? Ralph?"

"Of course not. Duh," Wally replied as if his friend was mentally impaired, "He's the Elongated Man."

"You've _got_ to be kidding."

"Okay then, big guy, who are you going to nominate?"

Jon sat back for a moment, pondering.

"Rex, I guess," He said finally.

"Metamorpho?" Flash replied, incredulous. "At least Ralph's never tried to take down the team!"

"Both of them are fine," Batman interjected, clearly becoming annoyed.

"I have a nomination."

All six heroes turned to look expectantly at the Martian Manhunter.

"I nominate Batgirl."

"Yes!" Wonder Woman nodded in agreement, "And Nightwing, too."

She turned toward Batman accusingly.

"They should have been at the top of your list, Bruce."

Batman was silent as the rest of the League waited for his response.

Finally, the Dark Knight spoke.

"I don't think they're League material."

---

Nightwing watched the sun set from his perch next to a favored gargoyle, until an orange smudge was all that remained of the day.

Then he flipped open a specially encrypted cell phone and dialed Barbara.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Babs! Wanna get some Chinese and go on patrol tonight?"

"Actually, I was hoping we could stay in tonight."

"What? Why? You know we've been MIA on the streets for weeks! Who knows what Blockbuster's been up to?"

"I know, but we need to talk."

"Any reason why we can't talk while busting heads?"

"Dick, just come over. It's important."

He sighed.

"Fine. Just let me make a couple quick appearances to get the grapevine going. I'll be there in an hour or so, okay?"

"Sure. How about I make us some dinner? I'll even bake cookies."

He smiled, "Just don't burn down your place in the process, huh? We haven't sold it yet."

"Ha. Ha."

---

"You've got to be joking!" Green Lantern exclaimed, "Batgirl's been doing this as long as Wally, and the Boy Wonder predates most of us! Hell, they could have been founding members."

"I agree," Superman added, "Both of them have a lot more experience than Kara, but you didn't have a problem with her."

"Yeah, what gives, Bats?" Flash said.

Batman stared at them, face impassive.

"After everything we've been through, I think we deserve an explanation," Wonder Woman continued to stare at him, "Bruce?"

"They're not metahumans."

"Neither are you," J'onn replied, "But that has made no difference. You are vital to the League and have saved all of us on numerous occasions."

"They don't have my level of training. Or my technology."

"I don't understand," Aquaman said, "I thought they were your partners. Don't you provide access to your equipment?"

Batman was silent.

"You're trying to protect them."

The Dark Knight flinched ever so slightly, as the rest of the League looked at Wonder Woman, "That's it, isn't it? You want to keep them safe."

"No."

She stood up, clearly annoyed. "Then what is it? We all know they're both well-qualified, so you can give that a rest."

Batman looked up at her.

"They lack the commitment for the Mission."

---

"Honey, I'm home!" He belted out in his best cheesy sitcom voice.

He smelled something burning and grinned.

_Looks like bringing takeout was a good call._

"You're going to set off the fire alarm," he called, making his way to the kitchen. He was just in time to see Barbara remove the burnt remains of what had most likely been a roast from the oven. She swore as the oven door slammed shut.

"Alfred always makes this look so easy!"

"Yeah, well, several years of culinary school will do that for a guy," he replied, plopping a large bag of Chinese food on the counter, "But once again I've come to the rescue."

She looked at the takeout and smiled, "Good one, Boy Wonder."

"That's okay, you're providing the dessert."

"I didn't get a chance to make the cookies yet."

He swept her into his arms, "Who said anything about cookies?"

They kissed deeply.

"Dick," she managed to ask when they both came up for air, "There's something I have to tell you."

"Fire away, Babs," He released her and began to rummage through the bag, "Just don't expect me to hold off on dinner. I'm starving."

"Dick," she gently turned his head back towards her, "This is important."

He could tell by her tone she was serious.

He put down the chopsticks and gave her his full attention.

"Okay, Barbara. What's up? Is everything alright?"

She looked at him for a moment and stared into his eyes.

"I'm pregnant."


	23. Expansion

"I'm pregnant."

Her words hung between them like some massive invisible weight.

Barbara tried to read Dick's emotional state, but her fiancé's expression was inscrutable. Her heart began to pound faster as an icy twinge of despair stirred within her gut.

"How is that possible?" he finally asked.

"Do I have to spell it out for you, Boy Wonder?" She clung to the sarcasm, It had become a life preserver that would keep her from drowning in her own burgeoning emotions.

"But we used protection!"

"Not that time in the Manor."

"But that was just once!"

"Actually it was twice. We were frisky that night."

"But still! I thought you were on the pill!"

She sighed, "Yeah, well, I must have missed a few days what with the alien invasion and getting the crap kicked out of me by your ex-girlfriend. Besides, it's not 100. You know that."

Dick fell silent, apparently deep in thought.

Now that the verbal jousting had subsided, there was nothing to keep her mind from running wild with horrible thoughts. A dozen depressing outcomes raced through her mind's eye. Everything from Dick calling off the wedding to him demanding she get an abortion. She knew a lot of it came from all the new hormones flooding her body, but this rationalization didn't change what she still felt.

She was vulnerable, scared, and desperately wanting him to talk to her.

"Say something," she whispered.

He looked up at her.

"This is a problem."

Her heart sank, and the world seemed to collapse in on her. Colors lost their vibrancy as her surroundings darkened. Her heart became a jackhammer, thudding so hard it threatened to explode forth from her chest. She began to feel the urge to throw up.

"I mean, Bruce is going to be pissed when we tell him he'll have to move up the wedding several months. And let's not even begin to think about your Dad's reaction."

He smiled, reached out, and drew her into his warm embrace.

"It doesn't change anything, Barbara. It just puts things on the fast track."

And suddenly, all was right with the world again.

---

"You want to tell me what that was all about?"

Diana had managed to corner Bruce down in his cave, just before he could sneak away on yet another all night patrol of Gotham. .

The League meeting had finally adjourned. The members had agreed to an initial list of recruits, and each of them would begin the membership drive as soon as possible. Their current timetable called for the new and improved League to be up and running within six months. With Atlantis bearing a significant part of the financial burden and some serious metahuman labor pitched in, the new Watchtower and its accompanying Array would be ready at about the same time. All in all, it had been both a constructive and important gathering.

A gathering flawed by the stubbornness of one Dark Knight.

"Pardon me?"

She casually hefted the front end of the vehicle a few feet, making it clear he wasn't going anywhere until this conversation was over.

"Don't play dumb, Bruce. _They lack commitment to the Mission?_ Please! Both Nightwing and Batgirl are exemplary models of heroes. You trained them yourself, after all."

Bruce was silent, attempting to stare her down.

She would have none of it.

She dropped the car suddenly, smiling grimly as he attempted to avoid being jostled.

She stepped right in front of the exit and crossed her arms.

"Well? Are you going to explain yourself or attempt to run me down?"

"Diana—"

"Don't _Diana_ me, Bruce. I want an explanation and I'm not leaving until I get one. Dick is practically your son and yet you don't want him in the League? And what about Barbara? She—"

"Diana, please."

She paused, as Bruce pulled back the cowl and rubbed his eyes. He looked weary now.

He also looked old.

She softened then, reminding herself how difficult it was for him to have any kind of personal discussion, especially one on relationships. She approached him, leaned against the side of the Batmobile and gently put her hand on his shoulder.

"Bruce, I just want to understand. You know they'd be an asset to the team. At the very least, they'd be able to help out some of the younger members we're considering. Good examples for the next generation. And we could groom them for a future role as leaders."

He paused to consider her words.

"At one point, I would have agreed with you," he began, "but I can't any longer."

"But why? What changed?"

"They're getting married, Diana."

She arched an eyebrow, puzzled.

"Isn't that a good thing? Isn't that what people do when they love each other?"

"Normal people, yes."

She waited for a further explanation, but found none forthcoming.

"Come on, Bruce," she prodded, "You're not making much sense, and you know it."

"It makes _perfect_ sense."

The harshness in his voice surprised her, and his eyes held a steely glare.

"Not all of us are immortal, _princess_."

The Batmobile roared to life.

She stepped back involuntarily, caught off guard by his sudden change in tone..

Abruptly, the cowl he replaced the cowl.

"I've got work to do."

Tires screeching, the hi-tech vehicle sped off, leaving a hurt and confused Amazon behind.

---

Barbara awoke to the sound of her phone ringing.

She groaned in annoyance and cracked open an eye.

Her clock read 6:37.

_Who the heck would be calling me _this_ early?_

She stretched a hand out behind her and felt around for Dick.

He was no longer there, but his side of the bed was still warm.

_Probably went out to get the paper or something._

She decided to let the machine get it and began to drift back to sleep.

At least until she heard Kara's excited voice.

"Babs! Where are you? Isn't it great! Clark asked me to join last night and I _have_ to talk to someone! Did Batman ask you yet? Of course he did! Can you believe it! We're gonna be in the League!"

Barbara found herself scrambling to pick up the phone.

"I wonder who else is going to get to join? Probably Steel. Clark's always spoken well of him. I don't know that many other heroes, but I'm sure—"

"Kara?"

"Babs! You _are_ home!"

"Kara, do you know what time is it?"

A short pause.

"Ooops! I'm sorry! I keep forgetting about the time change. Did I wake you? Sorry. I'm just so excited!"

"I can tell," Barbara stifled a yawn and stretched. She obviously wasn't getting any more sleep this morning. At least she didn't feel ill today. She hoped the worst of the morning sickness was behind her, "Mind slowing down a bit and telling me what happened again? I was half asleep."

"Clark asked me to join the Justice League!"

Barbara paused, processing this piece of information.

"That's great, Kara. I know you're ready for it."

"You bet, but that's not the best part! They're going to expand the League big time! We're talking dozens of new members! So we're all going to be on the team. We're going to be teammates! Isn't that awesome! Has Batman asked you yet?"

"Uh, no. Not yet."

Now it was Kara's turn to pause.

"Really? Huh, that's weird," There barely any time for awkwardness to begin before the younger woman continued merrily on her way, "Ah, it doesn't matter. He's probably going to ask you today! Anyway, do you think I should make a new costume? I mean, we're going to be in the big time now."

Kara happily babbled on, but Barbara found it hard to listen.

Although it was reasonable to assume that Bruce just hadn't gotten around to contacting them yet—after all, he might have had a rough patrol last night—she couldn't shake the feeling that something bad was brewing.

_Oh well, maybe he simply asked Dick first._

But the thought rang hollow in her mind.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Author's Note: It's going to get grim from here on out. But don't blame me, blame Justice League Unlimited and Batman Beyond. There are also going to be some major time jumps coming up as I fill in the gaps between the contemporary DCAU and Batman Beyond.


	24. Confrontation

The rain was coming down in sheets, as frequent lightning managed to snapshot the battle raging three stories below. As he attempted to track the two combatants while shaking the water from his eyes, Nightwing couldn't help but wonder why he was getting soaked to the bone in a Gotham thunderstorm when he could have been warm in bed next to the woman he loved.

But then again, Bruce had an annoying tendency to screw with his life.

Lightning flashed again, this time framing the two opponents perfectly. Batman was currently on the receiving end of a powerful blow to the torso. So powerful that the Dark Knight was easily lifted off the ground and deposited forcefully against a dumpster. The hero literally bounced off the metal receptacle, causing Dick to flinch in spite of himself.

He remembered all too well what Bane was capable of.

_Kicked my ass pretty good the first time we met._

He touched the side of his mask and infrared lenses slid into place.

Bane's massive form flared brightly against his cool surroundings, as the huge villain backhanded Batman once again. Recovering quickly, Bruce's smaller form assumed a defensive stance, flipping out a Batarang. With a deft motion, the projectile flew true, striking the thick cord pumping the super steroid Venom into Bane's circulatory system. Unfortunately, the hose was apparently undamaged, for Bane continued to press his attack.

Nightwing smiled grimly, as he launched himself out into the void.

_Well, this is certainly gonna piss Bruce off._

_He _HATES_ being saved._

---

"Such arrogance does not suit you, Batman," Bane's deep, accented voice rumbled over the downpour, "Do you think I would not have learned from our battles? Your toys can no longer damage my delivery system."

The huge man in the wrestling mask effortlessly hefted the nearby dumpster and threw it at him.

Batman dodged it neatly, boots provided much needed traction on the slick ground of the alley way. Still, the maneuver forced him further back into the narrow passage.

_I'm sloppy tonight. _

_Should have gone to bed after recruiting Jason instead of patrolling._

He ducked under another massive punch, looking for an opening.

_Dealing with magic always puts me off my game._

He was still assessing his options when a shadowy form plummeted out of the darkness and slammed into Bane from above. Caught completely off guard, the villain stumbled forward.

Seeing an opportunity, Batman delivered a vicious right hook.

Followed immediately by an uppercut.

He completed his counterattack with a well placed kick to the kneecap.

Bane's leg buckled, and the large man toppled to the ground.

Nightwing pressed his attack by repeatedly bashing Bane's head with his Escrima sticks.

For a few seconds, it looked like the surprise attack had been successful in changing the momentum of the fight, but suddenly Bane roared in rage and sprang back to his feet, knocking both of the vigilantes away.

"Insects!" Bane screamed, voice even carrying over the thunder and wind, "You are nothing but insects to be crushed under foot!"

"Nightwing! We have to—"

"I know! Keep him busy, I have an idea!"

Bruce was too much of a veteran to argue. Whatever issues he and Dick didn't see eye to eye on, tactics and martial prowess weren't one. He renewed his attack, taking the brunt of Bane's assault while Nightwing somersaulted over the enraged villain.

And snagged the Venom line on the way down.

Bane's head, securely attached to the tube, jerked backward, exposing his throat.

Batman didn't need an invitation.

The Dark Knight leapt forward and smashed an elbow into the front of Bane's neck.

It would have killed a normal man, but Bane was anything but normal.

Still, the blow nearly broke the villain's trachea, causing massive pain and instant choking. Bane's hands flew to his throat as he fell to his knees, eyes bulging and gasping for breath.

Batman dodged behind the brute and joined Nightwing, who was pulling valiantly on the cord. The Dark Knight wrapped the strong pliable tubing around his hands and looked at his former protégé.

Nightwing did the same and nodded.

They both pulled.

Seconds later, Venom mixed with the rain as it jettisoned from the broken tube.

---

"Hanging with the League is making you soft," Dick joked.

They stood underneath a narrow ledge three stories up, watching Gotham's finest drag an incapacitated Bane into an armored prison truck through a semi-solid wall of cascading water.

"What do you want, Nightwing?"

Although it would have been nearly impossible for an eavesdropper to hear them over the watery cacophony of the storm, Bruce clearly wanted to keep the conversation professional.

_Too bad everything I need to talk about is personal._

Check that.

There were two issues _Barbara_ wanted him to talk to Bruce about.

As far as he was concerned, Bruce could simply go to hell.

_If he doesn't want to be happy for us, then screw him_.

"I shouldn't have to ask, _Bruce_," he used his real name on purpose, refusing to be cowed while at the same time purposely pushing his buttons.

"We told Alfred over _three_ weeks ago. And we would have told you in person, but you haven't returned our calls or made even the slightest effort to meet with us. For someone paying for the wedding, you certainly don't take much interest in the bride and groom."

Batman was silent, staring at the slowly slackening rain.

"Do you think Barbara _wanted_ to tell you about the pregnancy _on an answering machine_?" He reached out to grab Bruce's shoulder, trying to get him to pay attention, "Do you have any idea how upset she is, Bruce? I mean, what the hell?"

Bruce locked eyes with him through the cowl.

And with precise deliberation pulled his shoulder out of his grasp.

But he remained silent.

Frustration growing, Dick attempted to diffuse the situation.

"Look, Bruce, I know we've had problems, but you shouldn't take that out on Barbara. She's happy now, Bruce. And so am I. You should try it sometime. You just might like it."

The rain had mostly abated by now. An unsteady drizzle continued from the sky, turning their sodden surroundings into a misty, surreal background.

"Are you finished?" was all Bruce had to say, reaching for his grapple.

"No, I'm not finished! Damn it, Bruce! Talk to me! Why haven't you contacted us? And why haven't you asked us to join the League?" Voice rising, anger clearly showed on his face, "Supergirl's in, for Christ's sake! And so is Zatanna! Hell, I tracked you from Etrigan's! Talk about a slap in the face!"

Batman fired the grapple.

"I don't need to explain myself to you."

Nightwing watched him disappear upwards into the gloom.

And then got out his own grapple.

_Oh no, you don't Bruce. I'm not leaving until I get some answers._

_One way, or another._

---

Barbara stared at herself in the full length mirror.

Although she might have been imagining a bit, she believed she could make out the barest beginning of a bulge in her normally washboard flat stomach.

The morning sickness had finally stopped a little over a week ago, and she wondered how much longer it would be until she began to truly show.

_Hopefully not until we manage to have the ceremony. Good thing the Wayne name can pull some serious strings. Otherwise there was no way we could have gotten a 5 star hotel for the reception less than six weeks from now._

As she stared, she couldn't help but wonder if their benefactor was even going to bother to show up for the event.

_Bruce has been asking so strange lately. I hope Dick can talk some sense into him._

"Hey there, mommy to be!"

Barbara turned just in time to see Kara land on her balcony.

"Kara! I told you to use the door!"

"Aw, come on! I made sure no one saw me."

Barbara smiled in spite of herself. Some things would never change.

"Fine."

Kara grinned, "Are you ready?"

Barbara looked herself over one final time and then turned away.

"Yup."

A loud thud heralded the appearance of over a dozen bridal magazines on her kitchen table.

"Kara! I thought you said you had a _few_ ideas."

"I do," her friend replied, sheepishly, "Okay, maybe a few _dozen_."

Barbara rolled her eyes.

Good thing she was off tomorrow.

---

Nightwing finally caught up to Batman four blocks later, just as the Dark Knight entered the Batmobile. He landed in front of the parked vehicle, which had been stowed deep within a secluded alley. The car roared to life, headlights bathing him in twin beams.

"Well?" He called out.

Batman gunned the engine, revving it a few times.

Nightwing stood his ground.

"You gonna run me over or are we going to talk this out?"

The Batmobile idled for a moment or two.

Then the cockpit slid back.

"Get in."

Dick smiled.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Author's Note: Why didn't Barbara and Dick join the Justice League? One of the answers you've been waiting for is finally revealed!


	25. Orphans

The cockpit seemed a lot smaller to Dick somehow. Although he had practically lived in an earlier version of this vehicle throughout most of his teens, he couldn't recall the last time he had actually rode shotgun in the Batmobile. It had to have been years ago.

_Big shock there._

He wondered idly if Tim would have the same sense of awkwardness whenever he finally came back from his Titans' training and rejoined Bruce.

_Of course, if he had half a brain, Tim'd stay on the West Coast and never come back. _

He immediately chastised himself for the unkind thought. Bruce had done right by Tim Drake.

_Guess he had already made all of the major mistakes with me._

He glanced over at Bruce, who was driven silently, typical Bat-face in play. A thin, grim line for a mouth and slightly narrowed eyes betrayed absolutely no emotion. Cast him in stone and he'd be a perfect gargoyle, his solemn visage keeping watch from the moldering rooftop of some crumbling edifice of a begone era. Actually, now that he'd thought about it, Dick had seen plenty of gargoyles with livelier expressions.

He looked back out the window at the passing scenery, knowing exactly where they were going. He may not remember the last time he had ridden in the Batmobile, but there was no way he'd ever forget the way back to Wayne Manor.

After all, it had been home for over a decade.

Riding in the passenger position, Dick considered how much things had changed since the first time he had sat in this seat, nearly bursting with excitement at the thought of his first patrol. Back then, Bruce would talk a lot more, still relatively new to the game himself. Sometimes, after a particularly successful or uneventful night, he would even crack a joke or two. Oh, there were times when he'd give a stern lecture, especially when Dick had screwed up somehow, but there was never any doubt that Bruce cared for him and was looking out for him. Combine that with the unconditional love of a certain Alfred Pennyworth, and the pain and shock of the loss of his parents would gradually subside.

All in all, it was a pretty good way to grow up, if you considered how bleak and hopeless life had appeared that night in the big top when his entire world came crashing down from a high wire.

_Too bad it didn't last._

The Batmobile turned onto an inconspicuous dirt road, hi-tech shocks barely registering the rough terrain even though the vehicle was pushing 80. Dick watched the sheer side of the mountain approach and was mildly surprised when no entrance appeared and the car plowed right through the wall.

"That's new," he said, "Hologram, huh?"

Batman nodded, "Installed it a month ago. Allows entrance and exiting in half the time."

"What about security?"

"The wall still exists. It just slides into or out of place several seconds before the Batmobile gets there. But the casual observer knows no difference."

The vehicle hummed down the underground passageway, gradually going deeper until entering the Batcave proper. Batman parked the car on the massive turntable and got out.

"Let's clean up and we can talk upstairs. Alfred will be thrilled to make a late night snack."

Dick was wary of Bruce's sudden disarming manner, but wasn't about to miss an opportunity to enjoy Alfred's cooking. He loved Barbara with all his heart, but he'd found out the hard way that she couldn't cook worth a damn.

---

"Damn it!" Barbara swore, staring at the contents of the oven in dismay, "I could have sworn the recipe said 20 minutes at 350 degrees, but they're still cold!"

"No sweat, Babs," Kara bent down next to her, "Lemme have a look."

The younger woman's eyes flashed briefly, and suddenly the baked goods were no longer cold. Instead, they were charred a solid black.

Smoke began to pour out of the oven.

"Oops!" Kara blushed, "This is why Ma never let's me anywhere near the kitchen."

Barbara rolled her eyes and groaned. "Just get those out of here before you set off the fire alarm. I'll order some pizza."

Forty-five minutes later, the two off duty heroes were enjoying what was billed as the best pizza in Bludhaven.

"Metropolis's pizza is better."

Barbara shot her an annoyed look, "_Metropolis's pizza is better!_" she mimicked, mocking Kara's higher voice, "Too bad _you're_ stuck in Smallville."

Kara threw a pillow at her. It nearly knocked Barbara over.

"Hey! Watch it! Pregnant woman here!"

Kara's eyes widened. "I'm sorry! Are you okay?"

Barbara started to laugh, "Relax, Kara. I'm fine." She reached over for another slice. Now that she was over her morning sickness, she had developed quite the appetite, "But seriously, how much longer are you going to stay in Kansas?"

Kara took a sip from her cola and then belched loudly.

Barbara winced, but her guest was obviously quite pleased.

"Well, I graduate from high school this year, so I guess I could attend an out of state university, but I think Ma and Pa need me on the farm, so I'll probably attend the local community college instead."

"Really? I thought you _hated_ being on the farm. You keep going on and on about it during our ski trip last Christmas. Whatever happened to 'I'm getting the hell out of there once I turn 18?'"

Kara looked thoughtful for a moment, and Barbara took note of how strange this glimpse of maturity was on her friend's face.

"Yeah, well, there'll be time for that later, you know? Ma and Pa have been so good to me, and I'd like to return the favor, at least for the next couple years. And anyway, I have no idea what kind of major I want. Besides, I'm Justice League now! Who's going to have time for school?"

Barbara smiled. _Kara's growing up_.

"Hey, Babs! Are there going to be any hot guys at the wedding?"

_Okay, maybe she still has a ways to go._

---

Dick walked into the study, hair still wet from his shower. Alfred had set out a nice spread despite the late hour and lack of forewarning, but there was no sign of the Englishman.

_Ah well, it _is_ pretty late_.

He began to make a sandwich from the various cold cuts and fixings, as he wondered why Bruce had chosen this room to talk things over. He looked over towards the fireplace and at the large portrait over the mantle. The fire cast much of it in shadow, but he knew that particular picture by heart.

John and Mary Grayson stared impassively down at him.

The painting was of such quality that it was almost photo-realistic. His mother in particular was very life-like. He remembered coming in here many times during that first terrible year just to stare at her. Most of the time he would cry his eyes out, trying vainly to explain to them how much he missed them. But as time went by, he would take great comfort in the portrait. He would often wind up talking to his parents through it, the way a younger child might discuss things with a treasured stuffed animal. With its near life-size, he could almost fool himself into imagining they were right there in the room with him.

Even now, staring at their painted faces, he felt an urge to talk to them about Barbara. As if by doing so, he would somehow sense them giving their blessing.

"I thought you would want to see them again."

Dick turned as Bruce entered the room, dressed in casual wear.

He remained silent as his mentor got something to eat and sat down in front of the fireplace. His aching muscles immediately told him that was an excellent idea, and soon both men were relaxing in over stuffed leather chairs in companionable silence.

Eventually, Bruce spoke again.

"How is Barbara?"

"She's good. The morning sickness went away a few weeks ago," Dick hesitated for a moment, but decided to press ahead, "If you'd bother to call us once in awhile, you'd already know that. I'm sure Alfred is sick of playing middleman."

"He is." Bruce stared at the flickering flames and then continued, "I'm sorry about that. Expanding the League has turned out to be much more of a headache we had thought it would be. But things are pretty much settled now. The main components of the new Watchtower are being launched into orbit next month. We should be fully operational within 120 days."

"That quickly?" Dick was genuinely surprised.

"It helps when you have a Martian, Kryptonian, and Green Lantern on your construction crew." Bruce smiled wryly, "And now that Waynetech isn't footing the whole bill, I don't have to spread costs out over multiple quarters. Besides, we wanted to get up and running as quickly as possible. Damage control after the invasion. We need to restore the public's faith in the League."

"You're coming pretty far out of the shadows these days, Bruce."

"Can't be helped. The world has changed. There are threats out there I couldn't have imagined back when I was starting out."

"That explains the expansion, right?"

Bruce frowned slightly. "The Thanagarians proved that even the seven of us weren't enough. This time, we'll be ready for anything that comes our way."

_Why is he being so open out of sudden. What's his angle?_

"Sounds like you'd want to have as many people as possible."

Bruce remained silent.

"Bruce. Come on. Barbara and I have more experience than half original League, much less all the new guys. You going to invite us to join, or what?"

The older man continued to stare at the slowly dying fire, face passing into and out of the shadows.

Dick began to become angry. _Does he really think a hot shower and some small talk was going to get me to drop the subject?_ He stood up abruptly.

"What? You don't think we can cut it? I can't believe after all these years you're still treating us like kids! I've been on my own for a couple years now, and let me tell you, Gotham's got nothing on Bludhaven. At least you've got Gordon backing you up here. Half the cops I deal with are as corrupt as Two-face!"

Somehow he ended up right in front of Bruce, seething.

"This isn't about you capabilities," he replied calmly, "I'd entrust my life to either of you without hesitation. You know that."

"Then, what the hell, Bruce? It is the marriage? Just because you won't let yourself have some happiness, we're not supposed to either? We're supposed to be monks? Take a vow of solitude and devote every bit of ourselves to your _Mission_?"

Dick almost regretted that volley, especially when Bruce's face clouded and the older man finally stood up, "You are free to live your own life, Dick. Yes. I think you're making a mistake, but it is yours to make. Both of you. This kind of life does not allow normalcy, and you're only deluding yourself if you think it ever will."

"So I'm deluded now?"

"You're letting your emotions get in the way of rational thought, but that happens to Flash all the time. It's not the reason you're not joining the League."

"Oh, so you're going to blackball us? If Superman or Wonder Woman vouch for us, what are you gonna do? Cast a veto?"

"If I have to, yes."

The blow didn't knock him down, but it nearly spun Bruce around.

Dick didn't mean to punch him.

He was just so angry. All those years of practice and training and fighting the good fight. And still, he somehow wasn't good enough. Maybe if he wiped the floor with him, Bruce would finally see just how far he had come.

But Bruce merely wiped the blood from his mouth and looked back at him.

"Happy, now? Got it out of your system?"

Then his eyes became deadly serious.

"Because you won't get another."

Dick sighed, rage evaporating. This wasn't what he wanted.

"Bruce, I just don't understand. For once in your life, can you just explain yourself?"

The two men stared at each other for a long time. The fire was barely more than embers now, and the steady tick-tock of a grandfather clock faithfully marked the passage of the night.

Bruce turned away to stoke the fire. As he bent down to add another log, he spoke.

"Do you remember that night?"

The way he said it, the tone of his voice, made it clear just which night he was referring to. Dick looked at the portrait again.

"Of course, how could I ever forget?"

"Do you still dream about it?"

"You mean, nightmares?"

Bruce nodded, standing back up and looking at the painting.

"Sure. Not as much nowadays, but still . . . maybe once or twice a month. You?"

Bruce closed his eyes, "Yes."

"A lot?"

"Every night."

"Really?" Dick was shocked, "You've never told me that before."

"Not always with the same intensity, and not always in the same manner, but I relive the death of my parents every single time."

"Bruce, that's . . . I'm sorry. I didn't know."

"I'm surprised that you don't."

Dick looked away, almost guiltily, "I used to. I still get a vivid one once in a while. Wake up screaming, bathed in sweat. Scared the crap out of Barbara the first time it happened when we were . . . uh, you know."

"And why do you think that is? Why does it haunt us so?"

Dick looked at Bruce as if he was crazy. "Why?"

Bruce nodded.

"Because we lost our parents, Bruce, that's why. That's the night our lives were destroyed and we became orphans! What the hell kind of question is that?"

"A question you should be asking yourself, Dick. _You're_ going to be a father. You're going to have a _child_. And yet here you are complaining about _why_ I'm keeping you out of the League."

Bruce walked up to him and looked him right in the eye, while pointing a the stoic portrait of John and Mary Grayson, "I don't want to have to commission another painting, Dick. I don't want to see a picture of you and Barbara hanging over yet another fireplace, and I sure as hell don't want your child to end up like us. I don't want him or her to have a _night_."

Dick stood there, stunned.

"And if you had an ounce of responsibility, you'd stop being Nightwing and find some way to lead a normal life. But since you're too busy thinking about what _you_ want, I'm going to do the only thing I can to minimize you and Barbara's risk. You are _not_ going to be in the Justice League."

Bruce locked eyes with his former ward.

"And that's final."


	26. Wedding

"Now _that_ was what I call a wedding!"

Barbara fell backwards onto the king-sized bed, awash with a emotional mix of exhilaration and exhaustion. Her wedding dress billowed around her form, the lower half of her body lost in cubic yards of silk, beads, and frills.

Dick stood over her smiling, as he deftly undid the tie on his tux, "Gotta admit, Bruce really came through this time. Who would have thought they could have fit over 1000 people in that banquet hall?"

Barbara tilted her head down to look at her freshly minted husband, "I expected the Mayor Hill, but three Representatives _and_ a Senator?"

"Don't forget the governor," Dick slipped off his jacket and stretched, glad to be rid of the confining garment, "Bruce has quite the Rolodex."

"To think our little cerebration became the Who's Who social event of the season. They'll be partying well into the morning. I almost wish we were still there."

"No you don't."

Barbara laughed as he began to take off her shoes. All too soon her mirth was replaced with a groan of pleasure as Dick's hands worked wonders on her tired and sore feet.

"It was so nice to see Tim again," she practically moaned, eyes closed in pleasure.

"Yeah. His girlfriend is a hottie, even if she is a foot taller than he is."

"You better watch it, Mr. Grayson," she teased, "You're a married man now. Besides, she's too young for you."

"And orange."

Barbara giggled, "And _orange_! Good luck trying to have a secret identity with that skin tone."

Dick was working his way up to her calves now.

"Ummmmm. . . I like where this is going. . ."

"I thought you might . . . although I admit this would be a lot easier if I didn't have to wade through the crinoline jungle."

"Well, then, why don't I take it off?"

Dick's eyes narrowed as he grinned slyly.

"_That_, Mrs. Grayson, is the best idea I've heard all night."

---

She found him out on the balcony, staring into the night.

She watched him for a few moments, taking in his handsome profile. His tailor made tuxedo fit his body perfectly, while his hair and face portrayed the same boyish handsomeness that was a staple of the Gotham gossip columns. A casual observation would conclude the host of the party was merely taking a breather from the festivities inside, but she knew better.

The eyes told her everything she needed to know.

It was past midnight, and Gotham's siren song was calling to him.

Too bad she had already decided the city could survive one night without its dark guardian.

"Bruce!" she called out, striding over to him, "What a wonderful wedding. This beat anything Audrey ever took me too. You really went all out."

He turned away from the darkness, "Hello, Diana."

"Hello yourself. What are you doing out here? Let's go back inside and dance."

"I think Bruce Wayne has done his part for the evening."

Diana pursed her lips and folded her arms.

"Bruce, you are _not_ going out on patrol tonight."

"Diana—"

"Don't _Diana_ me. You're going to have fun tonight with your friends. This is a night for celebration not fisticuffs in some dank alley."

"This is a high profile event, with lots of security," Bruce replied, "The perfect time for someone to make a move elsewhere, while Gordon and most of his best and brightest are occupied here."

"No."

"I'm just being proactive, Diana. You don't know Gotham like I do—"

"No."

He was becoming annoyed, and he began to morph into Bat mode.

"I don't need your permission, Princess."

"The Johns have it covered."

Bruce cocked an eyebrow quizzically.

She smiled, reaching out to smooth his lapel. "I took the liberty of asking J'onn to patrol about an hour ago. John overheard me and offered to accompany him. I think he couldn't wait to get out of his formal ware. Besides, he was tired of me asking him questions about his new girlfriend."

"Stewart's dating again?"

"He won't admit it, but Wally spilled the beans. Apparently she's in the Business. Calls herself Vixen. Ever hear of her?"

Bruce shook his head, but filed the name away for future research.

She grabbed his hand and began to lead him back into the banquet hall, "So, as you can see, no need to be out here hoping in vain for the Bat signal."

Amused despite himself, Bruce allowed her to pull him along.

Seconds later, she twirled herself into his arms on the dance floor as the band began another set. "Tonight's a job for Bruce Wayne."

---

The newlyweds snuggled together peacefully under the covers, weary from their latest bout of lovemaking. Dick's hand rested comfortably on her growing belly.

"Do you think it's a boy or a girl?" she asked.

"Boy, I hope."

"_I_ think it's a girl."

"Well, there's one way to find out."

"That's cheating!"

"Well, you're the one who wants to know so badly."

"Oh, and like you don't? You've already been buying toys!"

"What can I say? I'm excited."

She was quiet for a while, contemplative.

"Do you think anyone noticed?"

"I doubt it," he replied, quick to reassure her, "You're barely showing, and there was so much lace on that dress that you could have been smuggling a watermelon undetected."

"Are you sure? I just hope I didn't embarrass Daddy."

Dick decided to change the subject so she would no longer dwell on it.

"Besides, Diana totally upstaged you in her little red dress."

She jabbed him in the ribs.

He grunted and began to nibble on her ear, sending shivers down her body.

"Stop that, it tickles!" she swatted him playfully.

Her retaliation quickly began a tickle war.

Which just as quickly descended into something much more pleasurable.

---

As he danced with Diana, Bruce Wayne was at war with himself.

While he knew Gotham was in good hands with J'onn and the Green Lantern keeping watch, the rational part of his mind kept wondering when disaster would strike.

It always did.

So many dignitaries in one place, and Jim Gordon had made plenty of enemies over the years. Not to mention dozens of Gotham's rich and famous.

And yet, there was Clark dancing awkwardly with Lois Lane, super-hearing no doubt eavesdropping on everything within 5 miles. And by the punch bowl, Wally West was attempting to hit on Veronica Vreeland with no success, having been warned off Supergirl by her cousin earlier in the evening. The blond Kryptonian was currently staring wistfully at the dance floor, no doubt irritated that even Tim had a dance partner. Eying the Tamaranean for a moment, Bruce decided that it was probably time to have Alfred give Tim "the talk." Observing how closely the two teenagers danced and just how much skin the dazzling young woman's dress bared, he figured that it might already be too late.

All in all, there were enough heroes here to tackle anything short of Darkseid.

Not to mention the Amazon princess he had in his arms at this very moment.

She always very attractive to him, but somehow, tonight, she had transcended mere beauty and become something akin to divine. Perhaps it was the simple normalcy of the occasion that made Diana even more alluring to him.

Here they were, dancing at the wedding of the closest thing he would ever have to a son, surrounded by the closest thing he would ever have to a family. No costumes. No crazies. No chaos. No crime.

_So this is what it's like for normal people._

A slow dance began and Diana rested her head against his chest and held him close.

Perhaps, just for tonight, he could relax.

They danced, near and warm, for what seemed like hours.

And when the last set of songs ended and the music slowly died away, and she looked up at him, eyes glimmering in the subdued light of the elegant chamber, he felt his heart nearly break at the sight of her beauty.

She smiled, "Cat got your tongue, Bruce?"

A long, lingering kiss was his only reply.

---

"Whew," Barbara gasped, finally able to think coherently again, "They don't call you Boy Wonder for nothing!"

"Glad you approve."

He glanced over at the clock and whistled.

"As much as I'm enjoying this marathon consummation of our marriage, we better get some sleep. The plane leaves in less than six hours."

"I still don't see why we had to rush the honeymoon," she pouted, "We're barely going to enjoy this suite. And you know we're not going to be able to afford anything like it for a long time."

"Can't be helped, Babs. The new class at the Bludhaven police academy starts in three weeks. That barely leaves enough time to see Europe as it is."

They lay in silence, limbs intertwined.

Barbara hated to bring it up yet again, but she knew she had to.

"Are you sure you want to go through with this, Dick?"

"Barbara, we've already been through this. As much as I hate to admit it, Bruce was right. It's time for Nightwing to take a backseat to Richard Grayson, soon to be one of Bludhaven's finest. It's the best thing for you and the baby."

"And what about you? It is the best thing for you?"

Dick was silent.

She turned over to face him, lightly touching the side of his face.

"You've been doing this since you were 12 years old. It's who you are, Dick."

"No," He grasped her hand, holding it to his cheek, "It's who I was."

Then he kissed her on the forehead and rolled away.

"Let's get some rest. I hear the jetlag's a real bitch, especially when you don't take the Batwing to get there."

But it was a long time before Barbara managed to sleep.

Somehow, she didn't think it would be that easy for him to give up being Nightwing.

Especially when she was having such a hard time giving up being Batgirl.


	27. Initiation Day

Barbara gradually surfaced from the comfort of a good night's sleep. She instinctively reached out toward Dick, fingers finding only traces of body warmth among the empty sheets. She cracked open an eye, confirming that her husband had already left their bed.

Husband.

What a strange but welcome title for him, _husband._ Although they had been married almost three months now, she still had to wrap her mind around the concept. But she had to admit, it was becoming easier with each passing week.

She listened carefully and soon picked out the gentle sound of falling water coming from behind the door of their master bedroom. In reality, that rather austere title was a private joke; it was the only bathroom in their one bedroom apartment. A cop's salary didn't go very far in Bludhaven ("No wonder so many of them take bribes," Dick had remarked upon receiving his first paycheck), especially when they had decided she was going to be a stay-at-home mom for a while.

She smiled. Once again, he had tried to let her sleep in while he began his day.

She sat up awkwardly, and slowly got to her feet. Her belly distended and she gently cupped herself and sighed.

A slight tremor washed away her melancholy.

"Kicking already, kiddo?" she whispered, smiling, "You're going to be a crime fighter for sure, just like mom and dad, aren't you?"

"I'm sorry, did I wake you?"

She turned to see Dick standing in the doorway, having just come out of the shower.

_Damn, he's sexy, _she thought, watching a few drops of water run down her husband's washboard abs. Despite his new civilian life, he still kept up with his training regimen. The uniform may have changed, but the man underneath it was still Nightwing.

_I, on the other hand, am a blimp._

"Hey, Babs, everything okay?" He stood next to her and gently placed a hand on her belly. Seconds later, he jumped, "Oh! He's playing soccer today, huh?"

"Every day is the World Cup lately, Mr. Grayson. And what is this _he_ business?"

"Merely wishful thinking, hon." He finished drying off and began to dress.

She put on her bathrobe and began to waddle toward what passed for their kitchen. Halfway there, she caught her reflection in the mirror and moaned.

"Cloning is looking better all the time," she muttered to herself, but as usual, Dick's keen hearing picked up the remark.

"Oh, come on! Two more months and it will all be over."

"Easy for you to say. You don't look like the Penguin!"

Dick began to laugh, until he noticed her glare.

"I think you look beautiful," he said sincerely.

She harrumphed and padded into the kitchen.

A few minutes later, the coffee was ready and she had finished packing his lunch.

She watched him as he entered the tiny kitchen, looking even more sexy in his police uniform. She automatically reached out to straighten his tie, and casually began her interrogation, "So, last week on the dayshift, huh?"

"Yeah, now the rookie gets to try his hand at the night shift," he said between sips of coffee and bites of toast, "I swear, if I have to hear one more story about how much worse things are at night! If only they knew, huh?"

"It's been a rough transition," she allowed, giving her husband a bit more rope.

"No kidding," he reached up to the top of the fridge and began to put on his gun belt, "I won't deny the frustration of having to listen to all these so-called vets tell me how to do stuff I'd learned over a decade ago from a _much_ better teacher. Not to mention all the corruption! It's like working in a sewer. Your Dad could really clean up house down here."

"So it's safe to say, you're not too happy," she murmured, cutting to the chase.

"And working during the _day_ takes more adjustment than I---huh? What?"

"I said, you're not happy," she looked him in the eye.

"Babs—"

"Go ahead," she said, careful to keep his gaze, "Try to deny it."

"Honey, I—"

"You hate it, Dick. Come on! The red tape. The botched procedures. The bad cops. Having to pretend you don't know what you're doing when you're better trained than all of them put together. You hate it! Every single day of it."

He looked away. "No, I don't, it's just that—"

"Ha! You're lying!"

"Huh?"

"You can't look me in the eye and say that. Admit it."

He sighed. He gently moved her out of his way and grabbed his hat and coat.

"What do you want me to say, Barbara? It's what best for the baby."

"You can't tell me you don't miss it. Hell, I know I do."

He stopped by the door, in the middle of undoing the locks.

She watched his shoulders slump a bit. Regret at spoiling the morning boiled up from her gut, but she hated to see him so unhappy. She knew there was much truth in what he had just said, but at the same time, she knew who he was, and, even more importantly, what he wasn't.

"Why are you bringing this up again, Babs?"

"You know why."

He remained silent, tacitly agreeing with her.

"Today's the day," she continued, "And you wanted to be up there as much as I did. Maybe even more."

He didn't move for at least a minute. She wanted to see his face, but she decided she had pushed him enough for now.

Suddenly, the rest of the locks were undone and the door was open.

"That's all in the past now," he stepped out into the hall, "It doesn't matter anymore."

The door closed behind him.

She couldn't help but notice he didn't let her see his eyes.

---

"Each of you brings something different to the table. Strength, speed, stealth, whatever. But we're all equal in at least one way. Each of us is willing to make the sacrifices a hero needs to make. Even the ultimate one."

The Man of Steel paused.

"Since there are so many of us, we have to chance to do more than just put out fires, both literal and figurative. We can be _proactive_. We can do some _real_ good in the world. But we're going to have to be organized. J'onn will be up here, keeping an eye on everything. He'll be the one to decide who's going where and when. I know a lot of you are used to making those decisions for yourself, but from now on, we have to be more coordinated than that. We can't be cowboys anymore. Or cowgirls."

Huntress rolled her eyes as the rest of the assembled heroes laughed at Superman's stupid little joke.

_Are these people for real?_

She began to look around impatiently as the Kryptonian droned on, trying to find Batman. It was his fault, after all. He was the one who had invited her to this quilting bee.

She finally caught a glimpse of him talking to the Robin Hood wannabe, and was about to approach and give him a piece of her mind when she noticed someone staring at her.

At least, she thought he was looking at her.

It was kind of hard to tell, considering the guy had no face to speak off. Just the barest hint of some basic features. The rest of his outfit wasn't anything to write home about, either.

_Who the hell wears a fedora anymore?_

"Hey, Blankman!" she hissed loudly, drawing annoyed looks from Metamorpho and the cowboy behind her.

The guy in the trenchcoat cocked his head slightly.

"Take a picture, it will last longer."

A few seconds later, he did just that, using some version of a spy camera. Then he tucked it back into his trench coat and disappeared back into the crowd of heroes.

"That son of a—"

"Ahem."

Huntress looked up at a slightly annoyed Superman.

"Uh, sorry," she blushed slightly. "Please continue."

_Trenchcoat's gotta pair, I'll give him that._

_Wonder what he looks like under that thing . . . _

---

"There you are!"

Batman looked up from his table in the commissary. "Hello, Diana."

"Everything must be going well if you're taking time to have a bite to eat on the first day with our expanded roster."

"J'onn insisted I take a break."

The Amazon sat down at his table with her tray. "Since when do you listen to J'onn?"

"When I know he's right. I've been putting in 18 hour days for over two months. I suppose I can take a break for lunch."

Diana smiled at him. "You're making more sense than usual, Bruce. Are you feeling okay?"

"Ha. Ha."

They ate in companionable silence for a few moments, watching the newly minted members of the League around them sit, eat, chat, or merely gaze outside at the Earth far below. The new Watchtower was easily ten times bigger than the last one and carried a crew complement of over 100 support staff divided into three shifts. Two dozen of the heroes actually lived on the space station full-time, while the rest had rooms they could crash in between missions. Finally, they had a fleet of 50 Javelins ready to go at any time.

"It's something else, isn't it?" She remarked after awhile.

He nodded. "We've come a long way from the day we rescued J'onn."

"Everybody was so eager to join up. I guess we have a lot of admirers."

"Not everybody," He sipped his drink, "Green Arrow declined."

"Really? I'm sorry to hear that, Bruce. I know you really wanted him."

Bruce smiled, "Don't count him out yet. He may come around."

She noticed he had finished his meal, and quickly continued the conversation in order to keep him from bolting. "So, I suppose that you're going to continue with this part-time façade now, huh?"

"Gotham needs me."

"Last time I checked, Gotham is a part of the Earth."

He stared at her, clearly annoyed.

"Come on, Bruce. You're no more a part-timer than the rest of us."

"With the expanded roster, I doubt they'll need me as much."

"Maybe not," her voice lowered huskily, sending tingles up and down his spine, as she placed her hand on his own, "But _I_ like having you around."

"Diana—"

"Don't tell me you've forgotten about that night?" she teased.

"I could never forget that night," he replied, pulling his hand back, "But that doesn't change the fact it was a mistake."

She sat back, surprised at his bluntness.

"Probably the most wonderful mistake I've ever made in my life, but a mistake nonetheless."

She stared at him, shocked.

"It was a moment of weakness, Diana. It shouldn't have happened."

Batman stood up, grabbing his tray.

"And it won't happen again."


	28. Child's Play

As the hot water cascaded down his neck and shoulders, Dick was not quite able to muffle a sigh. He stood in the shower, eyes closed, and mentally prepped himself for yet another day of dealing with petty crime, inane banter from his supposedly veteran partner, and a seemingly endless sea of red tape. While the physical demands of the job proved to be insignificant, he quickly realized that he was not cut out for the reams of paperwork that came his way. Arrest reports, requisition forms, shift documents, and a whole host of others bigger than Bruce's rogue's gallery all vied for attention and kept him from doing what was important. Add in the sheer corruption of the Bludhaven police force, and it was no wonder his showers seemed to become longer and longer each day.

Barely five months into his new career, and he already hated it.

_Maybe Barbara's right. Maybe I can't change who I am._

He immediately began to castigate himself. He was going to be a father literally any day now, for God's sake. He had no time for self-pity _or_ self-doubt.

He'd do what was right for his child and for Barbara.

End of story.

"Dick?"

He heard the urgency in his wife's voice and immediately turned off the water.

"What is it, honey?" he asked, pulling the curtain aside and wiping shampoo out of his eyes.

Barbara stared back at him, a bit incredulous as water began to stream down her legs and pool around her feet.

"Gee, I _wonder_. Nice detective skills there, honey."

A split second later, he made the connection.

Once the shock passed, he could only utter one thing.

"Oh boy."

---

Diana stifled a yawn.

"Are we boring you, Princess?"

Clark chuckled as John raised an eyebrow. Only four of them were still at the conference table. Arthur was attending to affairs of state and Flash had left the meeting early to deal with someone named Captain Boomerang. Or was it Captain Cold? She couldn't remember.

And J'onn, of course, was on the Watchtower observation platform, dutifully tracking problems and assigning teams to deal with them. Sooner or later, they'd have to get someone trained up to spell him once in awhile.

Which only left Bruce.

She stared at him for a moment before answering his question. Half of her wanted to pummel him, still seething at his remarks all those weeks ago in the mess hall. But the other half knew his comments had been yet another defense mechanism, hoping to drive her away once and for all. She was seriously beginning to believe she'd simply give him that satisfaction.

But not just yet.

"I'm sorry, Bruce, but we've been at this over two hours. Can't we give it a rest?"

Clark interrupted before Bruce could retort, "I agree. There's plenty for me to do back in Metropolis. I think we've covered just about everything important, right?"

_I AM SORRY TO INTERRUPT, BUT I'M AFRAID YOU ARE NEEDED IN COAST CITY._

J'onn's telepathy echoed through her mind. She could tell by the others' change of posture that they had heard the summons as well.

_What's the situation, J'onn?_

_THE POLICE ARE REPORTING A BREAK-IN ATTHE FEDERAL RESERVE. FOUR METAHUMAN'S INVOLVED, INCLUDING COPPERHEAD AND CHEETAH._

"Do you suppose the Injustice Gang is back in business?" John asked.

"Only one way to find out," Clark responded.

"We better handle this ourselves," Bruce added, standing up and headed towards the exit, "If the Gang is back, I'd rather not have the new recruits take them on just yet."

Diana nodded. "Agreed."

"I'll bubble us up and get us on there in no time."

She shot a glance at Bruce as the Lantern's energy field surrounded them.

"Meeting adjourned, Batman."

He scowled.

---

As he guided Barbara into the car, everything about the whole process began to blur. Being the type of people they were, they had rehearsed this scenario enough times that everything appeared to be going smoothly. Still, the depths of his mind kept conjuring up nebulous, fearful complications. Some were on the border of plausibility: The car wouldn't start, they'd run out or gas, or they'd have a flat tire. Others were simply ridiculous like having the entire hospital blow up just as they got to the entrance of the parking lot.

He knew he wasn't thinking rationally, but he also knew he was very nervous.

_I'm gonna be a dad in a couple of hours! Jesus!_

Somehow he found himself on the highway, driving about 20 miles over the speed limit.

"We'll be there in less than ten minutes, Babs," He glanced over at her and couldn't help but wince at the obvious pain on his wife's face. Her heavy breathing was punctuated by groans of discomfort, which would all too quickly become outright pain. "Are you hanging in there okay, honey?"

"Just. . . drive!" she managed to gasp.

"Yes, ma'am."

He stepped on the gas.

---

As much as he hated relying on others for transportation, Bruce had to admit the Green Lantern express was quite effective. Barely ten minutes after receiving the summons, the four of them were a mere mile above Coast City and dropping fast. Superman was scanning ahead with his x-ray vision while John was concentrated on guiding his construct.

Not thrilled to be stuck in a giant green sphere with nothing to do, he stole a glance at Wonder Woman. This was the first time since the incident at the Fortress they had been in such close quarters. Despite his best efforts, she was still unbearable attractive.

She immediately caught him looking at her and smirked, "See something you like?"

He immediately looked away, "Just be ready."

"I got them," Clark stated, "It's Copperhead and Cheetah all right, but no sign of any other Injustice Gang members. Just some big guy in ragged clothes and a tough customer with a mask and built-in gun. Shouldn't take too long."

"Let's not underestimate them," He advised, automatically checking his equipment.

"Fine, we'll go one on one," John said, angling for the roof of the Federal Reserve, "I'll phase us through the roof. That'll give us the element of surprise."

"I'll handle Cheetah," Diana said matter-of-factly.

"Okay, I'll see what their new muscle-man can do," Superman agreed, and then turned toward him, "I supposed you'll want Copperhead?"

He shook his head, "John can take care of him. Besides, you know how I feel about guns."

---

Barbara let loose with what any normal person would consider a wail.

"Dick!" she cried, clutching his arm tightly, "Hurry!"

He spared her a look, even though he was going over 100 miles per hour at this point. He grabbed her hand and squeezed it reassuringly, "We're almost there, Babs. It's the next exit."

He prepared to change lanes in order to exit, glancing in the rear view mirror and make sure it was clear.

That's when he noticed it.

"What the hell?"

---

Superman smiled, as the four villains stood there in shock.

John's trick had worked perfectly. They had managed to surprise the quartet completely. Best of all, there were no civilians in harm's way.

A split second later and the big guy charged at him, bellowing.

"Pound their heads!"

Superman reached out to catch a massive fist, taking his foe's measure.

"Pound your own," he replied, slamming the arm back into his opponent's face.

_Piece of cake. Should be back in Metropolis in no time._

---

He had just managed to reach the bottom of the off ramp when the purplish wave of radiant energy he had spied seconds ago caught up to them.

An instant later and his whole world turned upside down.

Sparing a moment to check on Barbara, he then stood up taking in his surroundings.

His car was gone.

In fact, the entire city was gone.

He was standing on a small island, apparently floating in the middle of some kind of red, black, and white space. He had seen nothing like it before.

"Dick! What's happening? Where are we?"

He knelt back down, quickly taking off his jacket and folding it a few times before placing it under her head as a make-shift pillow.

"I don't know."

_But I've got a very bad feeling about this._

- - -

Author's Note: Well, I always told you it would get dark eventually. Here it comes. BTW, if you are confused, go watch the episode "Child's Play" and you'll understand just what's at stake here.


	29. Strangers in a Strange Land

Crimson and black ribbons and splotches were scattered across the strange white space in all directions, peppered with floating islands as far as the eye could see.

And Kara could see a long way indeed.

"Well?" Flash asked, pacing rapidly back and forth on the small chunk of land they now shared with J'onn and a few of the JLU technicians. Only seconds ago, they had been in the staging area of the Watchtower.

"Just more of the same, in all directions," she replied, "It seems endless."

"That's because it is."

They both looked at the Martian questioningly.

"I have reached out telepathically," he explained, looking at the strange tri-colored emptiness, expression inscrutable as always. "There are millions of people here, probably more, all adrift on rocks of various sizes. I had to shut down my probe before their sheer numbers overwhelmed my mind."

"Were you able to figure out anything useful?" she asked, "Like where we are? Or how we got here?"

"Yeah," Flash added, "What she said."

J'onn nodded stoically, now looking up at some of the closer islands hanging in the emptiness above. "They are just as surprised as we are, and they come from all over the world. I detected citizens from at least 50 countries before I had to shut them out."

"So it's global," Flash muttered, finally coming to a stop. "Great."

"They do have one thing in common."

"Which is?" Kara asked, beginning to freak out a bit. Other than a brief journey to Darkseid's homeworld, her off-planet resume was a bit lacking. And while they could breath and see and gravity appeared to be normal, this was definitely _not_ Earth.

"All of their children were left behind."

A chill crept down her spine.

"What do you mean, J'onn?"

The Martian turned towards her, red eyes glowing eerily against the bizarre background.

"No one under the age of 14 was taken."

"What?" Flash exclaimed, beginning to pace even faster now, "So where are the kids?"

"I do not know."

Kara hugged herself unconsciously, as the first cries of anguish and alarm began to echo from the nearest floating pieces of land.

_Barbara . . . I hope you haven't had the baby yet._

_- - -_

"Oooooh," Barbara moaned, eyes clenched shut.

"Breathe, Babs," Dick whispered, squeezing her hand. There was nothing else he could do at this point. Strange alien landscape or not, the baby _was_ coming. They'd just have to deal with the situation once the birth was over.

Unfortunately, there was no one else on their little rock so they were on their own. He didn't relish the idea of not being able watch their back in this bizarre and possibly hostile place, but he had no choice.

_At least nothing has jumped out to attack us yet._

"Hurts," his wife gasped, tears welling up behind closed lids.

_Crap. I've seen Barbara take a beating from the Joker without any waterworks. She must be in serious agony. _

"I bet it does," He tenderly brushed a few stray hairs off her face and kissed her forehead, "but it will all be over soon."

_And hopefully I'm only talking about the baby being born._

He allowed himself a few precious seconds to scan the surroundings once again for potential threats and took one deep breath before giving her the bad news. "Barbara, I'm afraid I'm going to have to deliver the baby."

Her eyes snapped open and locked on his, panic overtaking her pain.

"NO! I am not going to have our baby in this place!"

The forcefulness in her voice took him aback, but he quickly recovered.

"It's not my first choice either, hon, but junior's got other plans."

She kept shaking her head side to side like a toddler having a tantrum, until another contraction made her shudder, and she began to drown in pain.

"Unh!"

"Barbara," he said soothingly, "We have to do this."

She stared at him through bloodshot eyes, as he watched desperation slowly became resignation.

She nodded slightly.

- - -

"I must advise against this."

"Yeah, J'onn's right, Supergirl," Flash added, "We've gotta stick together."

Even a couple of technicians, keeping a respectful distance from the trio of heroes, nodded.

Kara shook her head, already floating a few feet off what little ground they shared, "We have to help these people. They're scared!"

"And I don't blame them, this place is freaky!"

"Be that as it may," the Martian Manhunter replied, ignoring the speedster's remark, "without a clear plan of action, it would be foolish to separate."

"I'm just going to scout around. Maybe I can find something useful."

"Supergirl—"

"J'onn!" she exclaimed, exasperated, "Barbara is out there! And she's due any day now! I _have_ to make sure she's okay."

The Martian stared at her, "You have no way of locating her."

"I have to try," she said simply, "She's my best friend."

She began to ascend, fixing her best _don't-mess-with-me_ expression on her face.

"Supergirl, I order you to stand down."

The young woman paused, and looked back at the Manhunter coolly. "Are you pulling rank on me, J'onn?"

"I am a senior member of the League and a founding member," he replied, "I will if I must."

"What makes you so sure you can stop me?" she blurted out, without meaning to.

"Whoa! Whoa!" In an instant, Flash had interposed himself between them, "Hey, come on! We're all on the same team here!"

Kara looked away guiltily and began to sink back down.

"I'm sorry," she said softly, "It's just so frustrating!"

"Understandable given the present situation, Supergirl," J'onn replied with aplomb.

"I think she has a point, though, J'onn," Flash added, "It's not like we're doing much good here."

"Flash—"

"You know, it's been awhile since I read the League charter," Flash continued, "Well, actually I only skimmed it, but I seem to remember a part where in case of a conflict, a majority founding members will determine a course of action."

"I fail to understand how this---"

"AND," the speedster cut him off again, "Seeing how I'm _also_ a founding member, my vote should cancel out yours. Leaving us with a tie."

Flash smirked, and shot a wink her way, "So what do _yo_u want to do, Supergirl?"

J'onn sighed, and regarded her seriously.

"Very well, Supergirl, but I will maintain a telepathic link with you at all times."

"That's fine. Maybe you can help me find her."

Then she shot up and was soon gone into the distance.

Flash watched her disappear and then turned around, grinning.

"Remember when I was only the impulsive one?"

"Let's hope it doesn't get you into further trouble, Wally."

"Me? But I'm not the one going out there looking for a fight."

"Perhaps not, but _I_ am not the one who will have to explain myself to Superman if anything happens to his cousin."

Flash stared at him for a moment.

And then gulped.

---

"Push, honey, push!"

"I AM PUSHING!" she groaned loudly, "SO WHY DON'T YOU SHUT UP!!"

"Oookay, then. Glad we cleared that up."

She somehow managed to chuckle in between bouts of pain, and he decided to try a different tack. _Maybe I can distract her from it a bit._

"You know, Babs," he said casually, "I just realized that we never settled on a name."

It took a few minutes for her to respond, as she was no doubt incredulous that he would bring up that particular subject now. But ultimately, she decided to play along.

"Jonathan. James. Jonathan James Grayson," she gasped.

He could tell from his new (and somewhat gross) vantage point that the contractions were coming much faster now. _Not too much longer. Keep her talking._

"That's a solid name, honey," he said, genuinely touched, "You don't think your dad will mind not getting top billing, do you?"

She shook her head, clearly in too much pain to speak.

"So can I call him JJ?"

She growled at him.

He laughed, "You're not going feral on me, are you, Babs?"

"Jerk!"

_Oh boy, I think I just saw the head for a second there. Got to keep this up._

"But that doesn't help us if it's a girl."

There were a lot more moans and heavy breathing before she was able to respond.

"Your choice," she said between gritted teeth.

He prepared to receive the newborn.

_Okay, here we go. . ._

"Well, I always did like Selena."

This time she truly laughed despite the horrendous agony she was no doubt enduring.

"You're a prick, Richard Grayson."

A second later, she felt a magnitude of pain she could have never imagined.

"And you're a mommy, Barbara Grayson!"

Time seemed to come to a stand still.

He held the infant in his out-stretched hands like some precious piece of china.

It was warm and tiny and twitching. And messy.

Very messy.

But he didn't care. This was their child. This was their . . .

_Wait. What was it?_

He looked between its legs.

And smiled.

"It's a boy, Barbara. We have a son."

"I can't hear him. Why can't I hear him?" came the alarmed and exhausted reply.

Just as panic was about to consume him, Bruce's training kicked in.

He every so cautiously gave the infant a swat on the bottom.

Amniotic fluid was coughed up, and a strong wail rose to pierce the relative silence.

Emotion finally caught up with him, and Dick blinked back some tears of his own.

He ever so gently brought their son into his mother's arms.

She was crying openly now, as she nestled Jonathan James Grayson to her bosom.

"Shhh," she cooed, "I have you. Shhhh. It's okay. Mommy's here."

He knelt by them for an unknown amount of time, transfixed by the vision of his wife and newborn son.

Finally, Barbara brought him out of his trance.

"Oh, yuck. Dick, you forgot to cut the cord."

"Huh?" His son's hair was dark, like his.

She looked up from their child, "The umbilical cord, honey. It's still attached."

"Oh," He blinked, suddenly realizing what she was saying, "Oh! Sorry about that."

He dug out his pocket knife and deftly severed the cord.

Barbara screamed.

He immediately jumped up into a defensive stance, looking around wildly.

"What? What do you see?"

"Dick! He's gone! Our baby's disappeared!"

---

Author's Note: It's come to my attention that the episode this part of the story takes place in was called "Kid's Stuff", not "Child's Play." Sorry about that.

Thanks for all of the reviews, guys. I really appreciate it. This story has morphed into something much larger than I had ever thought it would, and your feedback played a part in that. Just don't ask for quicker updates. My writing style is organic; I can't force it. If I try to artificially speed up the pace, I don't think it will turn out as well.


	30. A Death in the Family

Everywhere Kara flew, it was always the same.

Groups of people, sometimes as small as two or three, sometimes as large as a few dozen, all clustered together on the strange, rocky islands that hung in this alien space. Without ground or sky as a reference, she had quickly lost her sense of direction. Not too long after that, she had lost her telepathic link with J'onn. And now, after continuous promises to the people who called out to her that the Justice League was going to return everything back to normal---promises she was beginning to fear were empty---Kara wondered if she was going to lose hope as well.

But then, she finally saw her.

A majestic being floating scant feet above a small chunk of land, literally teeming with super-villains. Kara thought she looked familiar. Someone she had probably read about in the League files. Someone obviously pretty powerful if they could have pulled this off.

No matter, there'd be plenty of time for questions after she was taken down.

_After all, _Kara reasoned,_ I know a bad guy when I see one._

---

Nine year-old Tania Lopez was scared.

Her mommy had disappeared right in the middle of making her lunch, and her older brother was also nowhere to be found. The video game he had been playing was still running on the TV, but he was no longer there. She'd turned it off when she began hearing the car crashes outside.

There were _a lot_ of them. Big ones and small ones. Some sounded like they were hitting walls and buildings, while others sounded like they were hitting each other.

After that, things got very quiet for awhile.

She had called out for her mother for a long time, until her throat began to hurt. Then she locked all the doors, ran into her bedroom, and hid under the covers, crying.

But now she was hungry, because her mom had never finished her lunch.

So she went back out into the kitchen and tried to make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich without spilling anything. Her mommy always scolded her when she made a mess in the kitchen.

Tania was just starting to eat her sandwich when she first heard it.

Somewhere nearby, a baby was crying.

---

Dick stared at his wife with incomprehension.

"What?"

"Jonathan is gone!" Barbara screamed at him, beginning to climb to her feet.

He immediately crouched down and restrained her.

"That's impossible!" he shouted, looking wildly around her, "Babies can't just disappear!"

"Where's my baby! Where's my baby!" she wailed, digging her nails deep into his back and shoulder. He didn't feel the pain as his distraught wife actually began to draw blood.

He was too busy becoming reacquainted with a sensation he hadn't felt since that awful day on the trapeze, when he watched his life shatter alongside the bones of John and Mary Grayson. For over 15 years he had kept that terrible emotion at bay. No matter the villain, no matter the crisis, and no matter how much pain he was in, Dick had endured.

But now, his newborn son had been taken from them, they were trapped in some strange, alien nightmare, and he could do nothing.

Absolutely nothing.

And so, just as his twelve year old self had atop a tiny, darkened platform all those years ago, Richard Grayson panicked.

---

Tania listened to the baby crying for a long time, hoping someone would come and help it.

But it didn't sound like anybody was going to come.

Her mommy always told her to never leave the apartment alone, but she had to help the baby, didn't she?

But what if there were _bad_ people outside?

She had seen the bad people before, standing on the corners, smoking and selling stuff in little plastic bags. And the nasty ladies in the funny clothes and too much make up. And that smelly, scary man who had tried to grab her on the way to school that one time.

The baby's cries were getting weaker.

Tania decided that she had to help the baby after all.

So she put on her sneakers in case she had to run really fast, stood on a chair to look through the peephole to make sure no one was outside in the hallway, and then very carefully opened the door.

Before she allowed herself to get too scared again, Tania slipped through the opening and crept down the hallway.

---

_You know something_, _magic _really_ sucks, _Kara thought wryly, as she was repelled by yet another mystical force field.

"Cease your attack, you witless child!" the masked woman, who had kindly identified herself as Morgan Le Fey, commanded.

"No, I don't think so," Her eyes flared as she looped around for another go at it. At least her minions had decided to stay out of the fray, although it looked like none of them could fly, so their interference would have been minimal anyway.

She swung up behind the sorcerer and unleashed her heat vision.

Only to see her twin beams of crimson deflect upward and away form her foe.

_Aw geeze! _She gulped, watching her heat vision disappear into the distance,_ I hope that doesn't hit anyone above us! Better stick to hand-to-hand._

"Foolish girl!" Le Fey spat haughtily, "Why do you persist in this futile assault? I want to return from this exile as much as you!"

Supergirl paused, hovering at eye level with the mystic.

Surprisingly, Le Fey didn't try to zap her.

The Kryptonian crossed her arms in front of her and cocked her head slightly.

"I'm listening."

---

Tania stared out at the street, heart pounding.

There were so many accidents!

Buses and trucks and cars were scattered all over the street, some upside down, some crunched like soda cans, and some on fire. But there were no people anywhere. She walked over to the edge of the street and hesitated. She wasn't supposed to cross the street alone because they lived near an off ramp and her mommy had always told her that people drove like idiots when they exited the freeway.

But she hadn't heard the baby in awhile.

Maybe it had cried itself to sleep. She knew babies did that sometimes.

But she had to be sure, because it had sounded like the baby was somewhere in the middle of the street, and even at nine, Tania knew that was no place for a baby!

She took a deep breath, looked both ways just like her mommy had always told her, and stepped off the curb.

---

"So you're telling me you sent Superman and the others to fix this mess your _son_ caused?"

"Correct."

"And when they do, all of us will be transported back to Earth?"

"Yes."

Kara frowned. Due to the golden mask she wore, it was impossible to read Le Fey's expression, much less determine the veracity of her words. She looked down at the quartet of villains below her, "And you're saying you all saw this exchange?"

Cheetah put her hands on her hips defiantly.

"Why on Earth would we lie, Supergiril?" The feline humanoid spread her arms widely, "We're trapped here just as much as you!"

"Look, lock me up, I don't care!" Copperhead pleaded, "Just get me back to Earth!"

Kara glanced away and sighed.

_Well, what do I do now? Do I trust them or not?_

"How did you find them so quickly?"

The sorceress shrugged slightly, "'Twas but a simple location spell. Hardly a challenge for one such as myself."

"Okay then," Kara replied, "Prove it. Find Nightwing and Batgirl."

---

Tania had been looking for a long time, but there was still no sign of the baby.

The street was full of debris, but no babies.

She slumped to the ground in frustration, as tears began to well up.

"Where are you?" she cried out.

Her call echoed through the devastated, barren street.

Tania's lip quivered and she sniffed.

Then her eyes fell upon the supposedly empty vehicles.

"I haven't checked the cars yet," she whispered.

Tania wiped her eyes and got to her feet.

'Don't worry, baby!" she shouted, "I'll find you!"

---

Kara knew she was taking a significant risk by allowing the mystic to cast a spell upon her, but her concern for Barbara's wellbeing overrode her cautiousness.

Still, as Le Fey began her incantation, doubts resurfaced.

"Just remember that I'm in telepathic contact with the rest of the League," she bluffed, hoping she sounded more confident than she felt, "If anything goes wrong . . ."

"Fear not, lass. Enough damaging magicks have been released this day."

With that, the woman's mystical energies flared outward, temporarily blinded the Kryptonian. When her sight returned, she found herself about 20 feet above her friends.

The relief washing through her body was suddenly squelched, as Kara discovered her worst fears had been realized.

---

About ten minutes later, Tania finally found the baby, stuck in the passenger seat of a mangled car. She wasn't able to get the door open, so she had to climb through the shattered windshield. As she was sliding down the dashboard, she cut her leg on a piece of glass, but she bit her lip and blinked back the tears.

She balanced herself perilously on the driver's seat and carefully reached out to the still form. "I'm here, baby," she whispered, "You don't have to cry anymore."

When her hand came back red and sticky, Tania realized that the baby wasn't really a baby anymore.

And that it would never cry again.

---

Kara flew slowly and with great care through the strange void of their dimensional prison, carrying her best friend in both arms as if she was made of the finest, most fragile porcelain.

Indeed, Barbara was as delicate, or at least, her mental state was. Her sobbing had finally subsided, but Kara found her new silence even more disturbing, for now her friend, who had always been so strong and brave, lolled in her embrace like some puppet whose strings had long since been cut.

"Hang in there, Babs," she whispered, "I'll get you back to J'onn and we'll figure out what to do. We'll find your baby, Babs, I promise."

Kara gradually picked up speed, going as fast as she dared with her precious cargo, and allowed her mind to drift back to Dick. He was clearly on the edge of losing it himself, but upon seeing her, he somehow managed to pull it together, at least temporarily. After hearing what she had learned, he convinced her to take Babara back to the League for evaluation while he attempted to figure out what to do.

Kara doubted he would be able to do _anything_. After all, he was trapped here just like the rest of them. But there was such desperation in his eyes that she decided not to press the issue. Barbara clearly needed medical attention, and she was the only one in a position to possibly obtain some. Still, she regretted leaving him behind.

_I just feel so damn helpless!_

Then, as if on cue, everything changed once again.

---

Within seconds of the real world rematerializing, Dick was on the move.

It hadn't been that long, had it? Couldn't have been more than an hour? Maybe two?

As he took stock of his surroundings, he felt hope begin to fade. The entire area was a disaster zone. Dozens of car had crashed, their driver's no doubt disappearing from behind the wheel just as he had. Even now, the vehicle owners were looking around, dazed by their sudden return. He sprinted down the street, heart heavy with despair.

"Jonathan!" he screamed over and over, voice raw with emotion.

At last, he spotted his car, front end crushed under a bus.

Adrenalin kicked in and he practically leapt over to the ruined vehicle. To his utter amazement and relief, he heard soft sobbing inside.

"It's going to be okay, Jonathan," he shouted, grabbing the damaged passenger door with all his strength and wrenching it open, "Daddy's here. Daddy's gonna take good care of you."

He peered inside and froze.

A young Hispanic girl huddled in the driver's seat, crying. She was cradling something tiny to her chest. Something with a head of dark hair.

And covered in blood.

"I'm sorry, mister," the girl blubbered, "I tried to save him! I really did!"

"No," he whispered, "God, no . . ."

---

_I haven't been a kid since I was eight years old._

The words echoed through the fatigued recesses of his mind. In hindsight, they felt unnecessarily harsh. Diana's remark had been innocuous enough, and she had made it before they realized the magnitude of the horror the mystic excursion had caused. While things had been fairly serene when they manifested at Disney Land, contact with the Watchtower had revealed the tremendous cost of Mordred's actions.

Hundreds of planes had crashed with no pilots. Dozens of trains had derailed with no engineers. And worst of all, tens of thousands of car accidents, ranging from the mundane to the truly spectacular. The cumulative property damage was in the trillions. But in all cases, no adults had been aboard the vehicles, sparing potentially millions of lives.

The children passengers had not been so lucky.

So the League went to work. The last 48 hours had been a blur of rescues, reunions, and reconstruction. It was a stopgap measure at best, for even the League could only do so much in the face of this disaster. But the local authorities eventually stepped up, and the national guard had been mobilized. Once the worst of the fires and destruction had been dealt with, the weary heroes could at last get some rest. After all, a paramedic could reunite a mother with her toddler just as well as Batman could. Perhaps even better, since his costumed appearance was not conducive to dealing with small children.

_Children. . . _

There was no way to know yet how many had died during the few hours the adult population had vanished from the face of the globe, but one thing was certain.

The death toll would continue to grow in the days and weeks to come.

A sharp beep brought Bruce back to the matter at hand. The Batwing was warning him of final approach to the Cave. He switched off the autopilot and guided the plane in.

Normally, he bound out of the Batwing scarcely before the vehicle had come to rest, but he was weary, both physically and emotionally.

He himself had found three dead children during his endeavors. Two babies and a girl who couldn't have been more than six years old. Even though he had found dozens of others safe and sound, he knew the memory of those three lifeless forms would haunt him forever. Flash and Clark had had it a thousand times worse due to the nature of their powers, and the rest of the Leaguers would have their own personal nightmares about this day for years to come.

He climbed down to the tarmac and made his way to the mainframe.

He'd call Lucius to get the ball rolling for a Waynetech charitable foundation for the victims and then get some much needed rest.

He didn't relish the dark dreams lying in wait for him.

He pulled off the cowl and cape, letting them slip to the rock floor of the Cave, and leaned against the back of his command chair. Maybe Lucius could wait until tomorrow . . .

"Bruce."

He turned and cursed silently. How could he let someone sneak up on him _here_ of all places?

He relaxed once he saw who it was.

"Hello, Dick. What brings you to Gotham?"

The last word was barely out of his mouth when the blow came. A solid, on target, perfectly executed roundhouse to the face. It spun him around and he lost his grip on the chair, going down in a heap.

The cool stone floor actually felt pleasant against his face, at least until the warm blood began to cover it.

"You were supposed to protect us!" Dick screamed, clearly enraged.

Then he became quiet, as he unsheathed his Escrima sticks and stepped back into a combat stance.

"But you didn't," he said simply.

Bruce heard the soft scratch of his boots, as Dick began to move.

"Time to pay."


	31. Aftermath

Sunlight streamed through the windows, setting the dust motes ablaze as they floated gently in the morning air of the kitchen. The smell of fresh coffee and eggs complemented this soft illumination, as did the sound of the toaster popping up and the thump-thump-thump of scurrying feet down the stairs in the foyer.

"Slow down, honey!" Barbara admonished, "You've got plenty of time before the bus gets here." She couldn't help but grin as she heard the creak of wood and the WHOMP of 60 pounds of 8 year-old as Jonathan skipped the final four steps by vaulting over the banister.

_Like father, like son._

"Jonathan," she called out, drawing out each syllable of his name, "What did we say about gymnastics in the house?" She finished buttering the toast and carried it to the table, where Dick was already drinking coffee and perusing the morning headlines.

"Aw, mom! I'm just practicing a new trick Dad taught me last night," her son replied, hobbling into the room while trying to put on his sneakers at the same time.

"Oh, _really_?" she arched an eyebrow at her husband, who quickly erected the newspaper as a barrier. "Isn't _that_ an interesting tidbit of information?"

Dick's eyes peeked over the top of the front page. "I plead the fifth."

"What's the fifth, Dad?" Their son asked, nearly collapsing into his chair as he finally got his heel into his left shoe.

"It's something Daddy says when he knows he's about to get into trouble with Mommy," she interjected before her husband managed to do anything save open his mouth.

Jonathan laughed, nearly snorting his orange juice all over his scrambled eggs.

"Daddy's in _trouble_!" he exclaimed in a sing-song tone.

Dick put down the paper and reached over to tousle his son's hair affectionately, "Yeah, thanks to you, tattle-tail!"

Barbara chuckled, and soon they all were giggling hopelessly.

Then she heard a glass shatter.

Quickly, she looked over at Jonathan.

Only Jonathan was no longer there. In his place was an empty chair covered in broken glass and spilled juice. A fork stood sticking out of a sizable portion of scrambled eggs, and a half-eaten piece of toast balanced precariously on the edge of the plate in front of where her son had sat only seconds before.

"Jonathan?"

She stood up, beginning to panic, while Dick continued to laugh as if nothing had happened behind the sports section.

"Jonathan!"

---

"JONATHAN!"

Barbara began to bolt upward, but firm, steady hands held her down, "Calm down, Barbara! You'll hurt yourself."

"Where's my baby? Where's my baby!?"

Barbara looked up at an unfamiliar ceiling and then around at equally strange surroundings. The equipment by her bedside was ultramodern, as was the décor.

She had no idea where she was.

"Where am I? Where's Dick? What happened—"

"All in due time, Barbara. You mustn't strain yourself."

She focused on the voice and realized she was talking to J'onn. The resident telepath of the League looked down at her with concern as he continued to hold her in place.

"J'onn, please! Tell me what happened to my child!"

The Martian Manhunter looked pained as he finally relaxed his grip on her and stepped back to regard her from the side of her hospital bed.

"That is a difficult question to answer. Perhaps after you've gotten more rest—"

"GODDAMN IT, J'ONN! WHERE'S MY FAMILY!?"

Sudden pain flared up from her abdomen and groin and she gasped for breath.

Immediately, J'onn's arms extended to restrain her gently, while a third limb emerged from his torso and began to manipulate some of the medical equipment.

"You must rest, Barbara. The birth was quite a strain on your body, and we must make sure that your rather unique exposure to the alien dimension has had no lingering effect on you."

"Suffice to say," he quickly added when she began to inhale to shout again, "you are on the Watchtower and Nightwing is safe, although we are currently uncertain of his exact whereabouts. This . . . event has been a worldwide disaster and the League is just beginning to stand down from over two days of crisis mode. Supergirl wanted to make sure you got the best possible care so we've had you here for observation ever since Batman and the others managed to reverse the transportation and return everyone back to Earth."

Already Barbara began to feel the pain killers J'onn had obviously directed into her system dulling her senses, but she managed to grip the Martian's forearm tightly.

"What about my baby, J'onn? What happened to our son?"

For what appeared to be a long time, his crimson eyes stared back at her in silence.

She struggled to stay conscious, but she could tell it was a losing battle. "Tell me, J'onn," she pleaded, her voice already sounding far away.

"I'm so sorry, Barbara."

---

Bruce blocked another kick, but left himself open to a blow to the gut.

"Fight back, you bastard!"

An Escrima stick passed perilously close to his face, followed by an elbow. He continued to give ground, attempting to reason with his former ward.

"I'm not your enemy, Dick. Why are you _doing_ this?"

"Fuck you!" Nightwing leapt at him in a classic flying kick.

Bruce had decided he had had enough. Clearly Dick wasn't in his right mind. . .

He pivoted sideways keeping his arms up high and tight to his chest, allowing the younger man to slip by in front of him, and then spun back around with an elbow strike, smashing right into Dick's forehead.

. . . otherwise he'd never be this sloppy.

The sudden blow broke Nightwing's form and he crashed violently to the floor, flat on his back. The Escrima sticks clattered off into the darkness.

"Now that I have your attention," he said much more casually than he felt, "What the hell is going on, Dick?"

The words were barely out of his mouth before Nightwing kipped-up and was attacking him again.

"You think this is _funny_?" Dick snarled, launching attack after attack in savage, frenetic motion, "You think this is a _fucking joke_? My son is _dead_, Bruce! But you wouldn't know that, would you, you sick son-of-a-bitch!"

Shocked, Bruce dropped his defense for a split-second, "What?"

That microscopic opening cost him dearly. A kick to the chest knocked him off his feet and plunged him headlong into the Mainframe, shattering the screen. Although the insulation of his costume prevented lethal consequences, the current rippled through his body and he hung there, stunned, legs sprawled over one of the many consoles below the monitor.

Seething, Nightwing closed on him, "He's dead. Barbara gave birth while in that—that place—and the baby disappeared! But I found him." Waiting only until the current had died down, he reached out and grabbed Bruce by the front of the tunic, "Only it was too late."

Tears were flowing down the younger man's face as he hauled on Bruce and threw him across the cavern. Muscles unresponsive, Bruce smashed into the hard stone floor.

"So much for you and your goddamn League!"

---

"Situation Report." The calm, female voice commanded.

"Confirmed death toll has reached 8,000 and will continue to rise. Globally, 100,000 is a conservative estimate. Property damage has surpassed 12 billion and will increase dramatically in the days and weeks to come. We expect over a trillion worldwide when all is said and down."

"Jesus Christ!" Another voice exclaimed.

"Calm yourself, Professor."

"They really made of mess of it this time." Yet another voice added, this one harsh and gravelly.

"Agreed, General." The female voice replied, a bit of annoyance evident in her tone, "What is the League doing now?"

"Putting out fires here and there, although in most places the local authorities have assumed direct control of rescue and recovery operations. Five of the original seven are accounted for. It is probable Superman and Flash are acting at hypersonic levels which are difficult to trace unless you know exactly where they are."

'Heh," the gravel voice said dismissively, "Probably still trying to save the day."

"Five?" The woman's voice asked, ignoring the comment, "Does this mean the Thanagarian has been located?"

"Yes. This current crisis put her back on the radar. Two of our operatives observed her rescuing children near Albany. We believe she's been holed up in the mystic's tower."

"Any possibility of confirmation?"

A new voice replied, heavily accented and female, "That will be difficult. Fate has powerful wards in place, but I am willing to make an attempt."

"Hold off on that. We don't want to show our hand this early."

"As you wish."

"What about the billionaire? Is he back in town now?"

"Yes, and we've had some interesting reports from our Gotham operatives."

"How so?"

"His protégé made a beeline from Bludhaven. Didn't stop for anything. Observed to be quote: clearly distraught and mentally unstable. Didn't even stop to assist civilians in obvious need."

"Professor? What do you make of this?"

"Medical records indicate that Barbara Gordon was pregnant and due any day now. It is conceivable she gave birth during this incident and something went wrong."

Gravel voice spoke up, "So the brat bought it? That's something we can use."

"Agreed," the woman's voice replied coolly, "A rift in the Bat clan would be quite conducive at this point in time. The Ultimen need someone with experience to lead them."

"No way! We don't need any more vigilantes. Besides, we already have an asset for that."

"Captain Atom is to stay in place in the League, General. We will not compromise him."

The room was silent, waiting expectantly.

The female voice spoke with finality.

"It's time to reach out to Richard Grayson."


	32. Fracture

Dick was just about to pummel Bruce into a bloody paste when a shotgun blast nearly deafened him.

"What the bloody hell is going on down here?" A crisply accented voice roared.

He turned and actually stopped in shock to see that Alfred had leveled the rifle right at him, barrels still smoking. The look on the Englishman's face was one he's never seen before, a mixture equal parts sadness, resignation, and professional determination.

Alfred pounced on this brief opening, regaining a portion of his composure in the process.

"Now that I have your attention, please step away from Master Bruce, Richard."

Much to his surprise, Dick found himself obeying, taking three steps back.

"You're talking his side?" he finally managed to blurt.

Alfred approached Bruce's prone form and carefully squatted down next to him, shotgun not quite pointed at the seething young man but close enough.

"This is not about sides," the butler stated simply, "You have clearly lost your senses. It's completely understandable. I am merely hoping I can help you regain them." After checking Bruce's pulse, the Englishman seemed satisfied and stood back up. "Now why don't you help me carry him to the infirmary?"

Dick blinked in incomprehension.

"You expect me to help him? After what he's done?"

Alfred let the shotgun slide down, until it dangled from his hand, finally dropping neatly to the floor, "And just what, pray tell, did he do, Richard?"

Alfred's bluntness was keeping him off balance. Dick didn't think Alfred had ever called him "Richard" before, and now he had done so twice in as many minutes. He stared at the Englishman as if he had never seen him before, trying vainly to form the right words.

"You don't understand, Alfred, he—"

"I understand perfectly," The older man's face softened, "I received a call from Mistress Diana. She explained what happened." His distinguished face was suddenly wet, and his eyes glistened, "Words cannot begin to express my sorrow."

The last word was choked with emotion.

Alfred took a few steps forward, extending his arms, "You have experienced a great tragedy, and you have every right to be angry."

Another step and his hands rested on his shoulders, "I'm so sorry, Richard."

Dick looked away, eyes welling up with tears.

Alfred embraced him, but the younger man kept his arms at his sides, fists clenched.

"You know Master Bruce had nothing to do with this," the butler said soothingly, whispering the words, "He would have given his life to spare you this agony."

Dick looked at him helplessly, and Alfred saw the same scared 12 year old boy Master Bruce had brought home at those years ago.

_How much?_ he wondered, _How much more despair would be visited on my family?_

But then the young man pushed him firmly away.

"You don't know _anything_!" Dick shouted, anger blossoming once again. He thrust a finger at Bruce's still form as if it stab right through him, "He could have stopped it! He _should_ have stopped it! He met Morgan La Fey and her bastard son before! With the League!"

He tried to stalk toward Bruce again, only to find Alfred blocking his way. He grabbed the older man by the lapels and shook him harshly.

"If he had done his job the first time, none of this would have happened! And yet, you still defend him?!" Dick began to shout, spittle spraying the older man, "Can't you see? He's like a cancer! He destroys everything he touches! _Everything!_ Me, Barbara, Tim, and whatever poor bastard is next! We'll never have a normal life! Never! And that's exactly what he wants! He wants us to be just like him, sick and twisted and all alone in a fucking cave!"

Alfred's face was as impassive as stone.

"I will not allow this ranting and raving to continue, Richard. If you wish to harm him, you'll have to go through me."

Dick's eyes narrowed behind the mask as he tightened his grip and actually lifted the Englishman off the ground.

"You think I won't?" he hissed.

Alfred did not reply, the tips of his shoes barely brushing the cavern floor.

He didn't need to, for both of them knew what the answer was.

With a frustrated sigh, Dick let him go.

"Figures you'd side with him no matter what." He began to walk back to his hidden motorcycle.

"Stay with us, Richard," Alfred said quietly, the acoustics of the cave carrying the words perfectly. "At times like this, you need to be with your family."

Dick laughed harshly and stopped at his motorcycle.

"I have no family."

He got on his bike.

"Not anymore."

A few seconds later, he was gone.

Alfred watched the tail lights of the motorcycle disappear into the darkness.

He sighed and wiped his eyed.

"Stiff upper lip, old boy," he muttered, bending down to complete the task at hand and get Master Bruce to a proper bed.

--

Time passed, and Barbara suffered.

They tried to help her, of course.

Kara seemed to be there most often. She would offer platitudes, hold her hand, brush the hair from her face, or sometimes just sit there in companionable silence. J'onn would talk to her mentally, monitoring her condition. He told her she was suffering from a form of post partem depression. As if she didn't know that already. He had offered to mute the pain in order to hasten recovery, but she had vehemently refused. She wanted to feel the agony. She _needed_ to.

She owed Jonathan that much.

Diana stopped by often, offering encouragement in her own fashion.

"You will overcome this, Barbara. You are strong and you will fight it."

Her words eventually provided a small degree of comfort. A spark of hope. But the darkness was still too strong, and it continued to shroud her.

Superman visited once, clearly uncomfortable. He had no idea what to say and was relieved when a crisis on Earth called him away. Surprisingly, Aquaman appeared one day and formerly offered his condolences. Apparently he had almost lost a son of his own once. Flash and the Lantern stayed away, along with most of the rest of the League, although she was certain she caught glimpses of many of them as she sunk in and out of sleep.

Astonishingly, she found the Huntress at her bedside once. She was remarkable civil, even apologizing for their dust up last year. Barbara was truly touched and began to bawl like a baby halfway through her visit. Helena was kind enough never to mention that aspect of her visit ever again. Before long, they had become friends.

And then there was Bruce.

Although he didn't cry, she could tell he was devastated by what had happened. Stoic to the last, he carefully explained what had happened, how Dick had responded, and how he would take care of her in any way she needed. For the first time, he seemed old to her, and he didn't even bother with his Dark Knight façade.

He even persuaded her to reveal her secret to her father.

"There have been enough secrets between you. You need each other now, more than ever. It's time to tell him the truth."

And that was the turning point. She ended up more shocked than her father, who apparently had figured out her identity years ago. "I always hoped you'd grow out of it," he had said, half seriously. He became the rock she clung to when the void in her soul became too much. With his help, she began the long difficult climb back to normalcy.

But through all those long, arduous months, there was no sign of Dick.

Sadness turned to anger and eventually anger became resignation. Some part of her realized he was hurting just as much, but the fact he had left her alone created a bitterness that would probably take years to get over.

Only once did she receive any communication.

It was several weeks after she had finally returned to their apartment, fully four months after Jonathan had been born and died on the same day. She had been out on one of her first patrols. Busting the heads of scumbags was wonderfully therapeutic, although all of the satisfaction of the work was gone. Combined with her acceptance into law school, and she was often too busy to wallow in the destruction of her previous life. She only cried herself to sleep once a week or so.

She hadn't even noticed the simple white envelope until she was finally preparing to go sleep. There it was resting on her nightstand, addressed _Barbara_ in handwriting she knew all too well. There was no return address.

She must have held the sealed envelope in her hands for the better part of an hour, awash with anticipation and dread. Finally, she opened it. All it said was:

_I won't ask you to forgive me. I can't even forgive myself. And I'll never be able to forgive him. At least I managed to spare you from seeing what I saw on that terrible day. For that, and that alone, I am thankful._

_Make a better life for yourself. You deserve it. For what it's worth, I'm sorry._

He didn't sign it, but she found his wedding ring inside.

After that, she regressed a bit. But after several rough weeks, she once again eventually pulled through, with the not insignificant help of Kara and her father.

During this time both Bruce and Diana had invited her to join the League, but she found herself unable to go through with it. On some level she knew dealing with those high level disasters would do her recovery no good. She even turned down reserve membership.

Eventually, she began to go out as Batgirl less and less.

By the time of the first anniversary of her son's death, she wore the costume only once every couple of weeks. Her heart simply wasn't in it anymore.

She was considering hanging up the costume for good to focus on her nascent law enforcement career. Her father was getting ready to retire and he was very supportive of her more orthodox career path.

But then she got the call from Bruce.

Tim was missing.


	33. Torment

Tim Drake, full-time Teen Titan and part-time member of the dynamic duo, awoke gradually to the sound of whistling. He recognized the tune as _Whistle While You Work_. He warily cracked open an eye and found himself blindfolded. Quickly flexing his arms and legs, he discovered that they were firmly restrained. Panic bubbled up for a split second before the training kicked in.

_Okay, okay. How did I get here? _

_Last thing I remember was being on patrol. I think I saved a woman from some thugs. Then . . .she _hit_ me?_

That didn't seem right, but as he turned his head slightly, pain blossomed like a grotesque flower. It was all he could do not to make a sound.

Once the pain subsided, Tim realized that he was hungry. Almost starving.

How long had he been out? Alfred had made him eat dinner before patrol like the Englishman had always insisted_._

_So, what? At least 18 to 24 hours. Maybe longer._

The whistling had changed to something equally merry, but he couldn't quite place it.

_Let's take stock of the situation_ _without letting them know I'm awake_.

Several minutes passed as he tested his bonds and attempted to figure out where he was.

The bonds were well-secured. His utility belt was missing. As were his gloves and boots, along with the hidden lock picks within them that would have come in oh so handy right about then.

The room he was in was cold, with little or no air circulation. Judging by the echoes of the maddeningly carefree whistling, the chamber was fairly large with a high ceiling. He also heard the occasional clink of glassware and, more ominously, the clear sound of metal scraping against metal. Careful sniffing yielded a strong odor of old chemicals and a hint of mildew.

Careful movement of a few fingers revealed that the table he was strapped to was very dusty. He was currently upright, at a 75 degree angle or so. The straps were thick leather, and tightened in such a way that he doubted he could break them or slip out of them. The table was obviously designed for restraint, along with the ability to position those restrained at various angles. A professional piece of equipment, designed for professional purposes. Like holding down patients for a variety of treatments who were uncooperative at best and quite dangerous at worst.

The smells, textures, sounds, and equipment all added up to one place.

He was in Arkham Asylum, which had been abandoned almost two years ago.

_This isn't good._

Tim suddenly realized the whistling had stopped.

A few seconds passed in silence.

Tim could swear he felt a powerful gaze boring into him from an uncomfortably close proximity.

The blindfold was suddenly ripped from his face. He twitched involuntarily.

"You can't kid a kidder, kiddo!" The last word was almost lost in the maniacal laughter that followed.

Laughter he knew all too well.

Tim Drake began to panic once again.

--

"Two days!" Barbara exclaimed, "What the _hell_, Bruce! You should have called me in _yesterday_."

"Recriminations can wait," Bruce responded, slipping the cowl over his head, "You take the Batmobile downtown while I check out the docks with the boat."

She nodded in acknowledgement of the order in spite of herself.

Old habits died hard.

The ramp to the outside was still several feet from its horizontal position when she gunned the Batmobile over its span. The shocks absorbed most of the impact as the vehicle touched down, bounced twice, and then tore down the narrow makeshift path that led from the cave to the nearest true road. Less than a minute later, the car burst out of the woods, fish-tailed briefly on the pavement before the tire treads latched onto the asphalt, and streaked down the road at a speed well in excess of a 100 miles per hour.

"Hang in there, Tim," she said aloud, as if voicing her intent would somehow make it more likely to come true, "We're coming."

--

His wrists were rubbed raw. Large red splotches glowed against his skin like a bad sunburn. And while he couldn't see them, his ankles felt the same, if not worse. He was certain to start bruising soon, even if the Joker didn't decide to accelerate the process with his fists.

The maniac was still arranging equipment on the nearby worktable. Every once in a while, he'd hold up a particularly intimidating instrument and regard his disfigured reflection in the shiny metal. Currently, he was using a scalpel as a toothpick.

Tim began to strain against the bonds with renewed urgency.

While he hadn't seen Harley Quinn, he had heard her. While that explained who had sucker punched him back in the alley, Tim was still at a loss as to what was going on. Usually Joker parleyed the capture of a sidekick into a quick hostage situation, hoping to draw Bruce into a trap. But this was different. Whatever Joker was planning, he was taking his own sweet time.

His empty stomach growled as if to punctuate that point.

Suddenly, the Joker was next to him again, twirling his scalpel between his fingers much like Two-face did with his lucky coin. Despite himself, Tim watched the bladed instrument with great interest.

"Why so glum, chum?" Joker inquired, face bunched up with fake worry.

"What do you want, Joker?" Time spat back, voicing a bravado he didn't feel.

"Oh, not much. Just a little tête-à-tête with my young friend."

"I'm no friend of yours."

"Ah, well, that remains to be seen, doesn't it?"

The Joker flipped his wrist and the scalpel embedded itself perilously close to Tim's ear. Before he could react, the Joker released the catch on the table and Tim was slammed back into a horizontal position. Then the air was forced out of his lungs, as the maniac jumped on top of him, knees pushing into his stomach and shoving his diaphragm well up under his rib cage.

Tim gasped and looked up to see the scalpel back in the madman's hand.

The Joker regarded him clinically as he slowly suffocated.

"What's the matter, Boy Wonder? No more smart remarks for your Uncle Joker?"

Tim's vision began to blur.

"Who is Batman?" The madman asked so casually that he might as well have been asking what day of the week it was.

Tim managed to swallow once before continuing to attempt to inhale. His breathing was quite ragged now, as his body kept fighting for oxygen.

"Come now," the Joker soothed, "All I need is a name."

The pounding of his heart nearly drowned out the words, but Tim managed to respond.

Ever so slowly, he shook his head. The meaning was as clear as if he had shouted it through a bullhorn.

"How about a first name, then? Or a nickname?"

The Joker's face was less than an inch from his own.

"Surely you don't call him Batman all the time?"

_If only I had the strength to head butt the bastard. . .._

Even thinking was beginning to become difficult.

"Initials, then?" The maniac clamped one purple-gloved hand around his victim's chin, while merrily cutting away bits of hair with the scalpel, "Come on, boy blunder, work with me here. Or we'll have to get _nasty_."

The Joker's tone changed mid-sentence, the last word gravid with cold, dark promise.

Tim closed his eyes. He didn't want to see what was coming next.

Besides, it was requiring too much effort to keep them open anyway.

"I'd like to buy a vowel, please," the Joker teased.

Then laughter accompanied Tim as he spiraled down into darkness.

--

Barbara could barely stand in front of the sink as she carefully washed her hands.

She hissed in pain as she gently rubbed the bar of soap over her bruised and cracked knuckles. Even when she had been at the top of her game, she'd never beat down so many low lives in such a short time. She must have given black eyes and broken noses to over fifty scumbags in the past three days. Hell, she was on her second pair of gloves!

But it was all in vain.

No one was talking about Robin. Either they truly didn't know anything, or (more worse) they were too scared to narc. There were only a handful of Gotham bad guys that could silence so many thugs even in the face of a clearly angry Batclan.

Two of them, Poison Ivy and Mr. Freeze, were locked up in the new high-security sanitarium Gotham had finally got around to building after one too many mass breakouts from Arkham. So far, no one had escaped from the new facility during its18 plus months of operation. That would normally be seen as a modest record, except Arkham seemed to have had a breakout every other month.

_Nice going, Dad, on finally convincing them to mothball that wretched place. Too bad the city council took so long to implement your suggestion._

Bane had been extradited back to whatever South American hellhole had spawned him months ago. Killer Croc was secured in Blackgate. Kidnapping wasn't Catwoman's or Ghul's style. That only left three.

_Two-face. Penguin. And, God forbid, the Joker_.

She paused to look herself over in the partially fogged up mirror.

Her left cheek was swelling, in preparation for a wicked bruise, courtesy of a lucky felon who managed to tag her good with some brass knuckles. She had returned the favor by nearly turning his testicles inside out with a solid kick to groin.

But that swift retribution wasn't going to do anything to dull the upcoming pain.

Her eyes were bloodshot, nicely complementing the sizable bags drooping from her bottom lids. And over half of her muscles seemed to be on fire from the paces they'd been put through over the past 72 hours. A long, hot shower would probably do them some good, but she was too damn tired to take one.

_That's what I get for slacking off. I need to either resume my role of Batgirl completely or I need to retire completely. This half ass nonsense is going to get me or Bruce killed._

_Or even both of us._

Barbara striped off her sweat-drenched and disgustingly flithy costume and let it fall to the floor. She was glad the weak light of the approaching dawn shielded her eyes from the many additional bruises her body no doubt had.

She kicked the pooled clothing from her feet and practically stumbled the twenty or so feet to the bed Alfred had insisted she take while she was here. Despite the urgency of the situation, she still felt weird sleeping under Wayne Manor's roof once again. It seemed like a million years since the last time she had stayed here.

Of course, Dick had been with her then.

She shook her head ruefully as she collapsed into the king-sized bed.

_And there he is again. Sneaking up on me when I least expect it._

Sleep quickly overcame her, but not before two thoughts echoed in Barbara's mind.

_Where the hell are you, Dick?_

_And for that matter, where the hell is Tim?_

--

Tim Drake awoke an undeterminable time later.

He heard Joker's voice droning on somewhere in the distance.

Surprisingly, he was no longer hungry.

Once he opened his eyes, he realized an IV had been implanted in his left arm.

Seconds later, he realized a catheter had been attached as well.

And then he just lost it.

--

Joker grinned as he listened to Robin's frantic screaming for several delicious minutes.

Then he stood straight as an arrow in his freshly washed doctor uniform and deadpanned, "Patient is awake and responsive."

Harley giggled from behind the camera.

"Dr. Quinn," Joker went on formally, "Please pan over to the equipment table and then focus on the patient."

"Oh, Mr. J! That's funny. Just like that old show on the TV! Dr. Quinn, Medicine Wo—Ahh!" The woman recoiled as he advanced on her.

"Don't EVER interrupt me when I'm in the middle of a bit!"

A minute later, after administering some rousing physical abuse, he was ready to continue.

He checked his hair in a hand mirror and smiled.

He then heard some sniffling and muted sobs. He turned in disgust. Was the brat going to give up so easily?

But no! Robin was seething in righteous, but ultimately useless, fury.

The sobs were coming from Harley.

"Oh, don't worry, Harl, we'll edit out your screw up in post production!"

Harley quickly wiped her eyes and smiled, despite the broken nose he had justly given her.

"There's a good girl. Now let's continue."

He assumed his professorial stance.

"Patient is exhibiting severe anti-social behavior. This procedure is designed to put the patient in a more . . . receptive state of mind."

He turned smartly and grabbed his trusty scalpel.

"Stay the fuck away from me, you sick bastard!" Robin growled, twisting violently against his restraints.

"Now, now, lad, there are ladies present." He approached his captive jauntily, then stopped at his side and did a little soft shoe.

"Don't touch me! Stay back!" The teen's tone was verging on the hysterical.

Joker shook his head, sadly. Then he looked back at the camera. "Patient is experiencing severe paranoia, with a rising level of hostility."

He turned back and patted the struggling prisoner on the head, "Don't worry, Robin. I'm here to help you."

Robin roared. A hearty mix of anger, helplessness, and rising fear.

Joker closed his eyes and drank the wonderful sound in.

"Now then, why don't we turn that frown . . . upside down!"

Joker began to carve.

As the screams continued, he had only one thought.

_I should burn a CD so I can listen to this soundtrack whenever I'm feeling blue!_


	34. Investigations

Eyelids beginning to lower for the third time in less than a minute, Diana shook her head in vain and let out a long yawn. She blinked wearily at the dozen hi-def screens in front of her and stared blankly at the monitor focused on Wayne Tower.

It stared back at her equally nonplussed.

_Perhaps you should call it a day, Diana._

She flinched guiltily at J'onn's gentle suggestion and spun her chair away from the monitoring station that had consumed so much of her time these past several days. Various live feeds from Gotham continued to cycle throughout the city, keeping it under constant surveillance. The Amazon princess watched her friend gradually descend from the command post and offered him a humorless smile.

"I can't, J'onn. Tim Drake is still missing. It's been almost three weeks, and we still don't---"

"Diana," The Martian Manhunter interrupted firmly, "If you keep this up, I will have to remove you from active status. You need some rest before it impacts your readiness for League operations."

"You wouldn't!"

The Martian's crimson eyes revealed nothing. He simply continued to look at her impassively.

"You _would," _She accused him.

"Diana, please. As a founding member, you are expected to set an example for the others," He began counting on his fingers, "Clark cannot be here all the time. John is on sabbatical with the Corp. Arthur is now a reservist due to his Atlantean responsibilities. Bruce is becoming more and more reclusive. Shayera intimidates the rank and file, when she is not simply bellowing at them. She almost brought Booster Gold to tears this morning."

Diana laughed.

J'onn paused, and then grew an additional finger, "And Wally, well Wally is not the mentoring type."

He gestured toward the various screens, "You had no sleep in almost three days. Would you truly expect me to ignore that and possibly endanger the success of a mission?"

As she began protest, J'onn cut her off and continued.

"After the fiasco with Cadmus, we all voted to overhaul our procedures and regulations. As you humans say, run a tight ship. Mandatory rest after 36 hours. No exceptions. You voted in favor of it along with the rest of the founders." The Martian grinned, "Or did you forget?"

Diana shot him a dirty look and opened her mouth to mount a counteroffensive.

She closed it a few seconds later when she realized there was no way to refute his logic.

Then she sighed and shook her head in surrender. "You're right, of course. I'm sorry."

She turned her chair back to the monitors for one final look before standing up.

"It's just that he asked for my help. He _never_ does that anymore."

She took a few steps over to one of the viewing ports and looked down at the emerald-blue orb slowly turning hundreds of miles below. She spent the next several minutes absorbing the planetary vista while lost in thought.

"Can you imagine how scared Bruce must be in order for him to do that?" Diana finally said.

J'onn nodded, joining her at the reinforced window.

"Bruce has always kept the League at arm's length. Of all of us, only you and Clark have truly managed to know the man underneath the cowl," he put a reassuring hand on his friend's shoulder, "And with this matter, he came to you. That is no small thing in itself. In fact, I would consider it an honor."

Diana smiled wanly, "I just want to help him, that's all."

She squeezed his hand and walked away towards her quarters.

J'onn watched the Amazon leave and then sat down in front of the monitors.

"As do I," he whispered.

---

The leopard seals roared in frustration as bodies fell everywhere except where they could reach them. The carnivores thrashed fervently through the frigid water, hauling themselves up upon chunks of ice in vain attempts to get closer to potential prey.

As Batgirl finally took down the last of Penguin's skanky bodyguards, she glanced downward into the large exhibit that dominated Cobblepot's nightclub. For a mere front, he had certainly spent enough coin on the decor. And she would know, having experienced Penguin's over-sized fish tank from pretty much every vantage point over the years.

"Whew!" She panted to herself, resting against the display's railing for a few seconds, "That took way too long."

"Fear not, my pulchritudinous interloper! Your demise will be swift and short!"

Barbara instinctively vaulted to the top of the railing and dove to the side as gunfire echoed throughout the club's cavernous dining chamber.

Her ears were still ringing as she took refuge behind an overturned table.

Which was perforated an instant later like so much Swiss cheese.

Fortunately, Barbara was now two tables over and still moving.

"Stand still, blast you!" Penguin roared as he attempted to draw a bead on her with his umbrella gun.

"I don't think so, Oswald!" she shouted with more bravado than she felt.

_How much ammo can that thing possible hold?_

Barbara dove for a nearby banquet table and disappeared below its ornate tablecloth. She scrambled underneath it for several precious seconds as the beautiful lace behind her was shredded into Gotham's most expensive tissue paper. She felt her short cape take a few shots before she somehow managed to reach a support column and get behind it.

She prayed it would hold as she struggled to catch her breath.

_God! This used to be easy! _

As the hail of bullets began to turn the column into kindling, Barbara looked around franticly for somewhere, anywhere she could go.

_Geeze! Of all the bad guys, I never thought the Penguin would be the one to off me. How embarrassing._

Click. Click. Click. Click. Click.

"Waugh!" Penguin wailed in exasperation.

Barbara pounced on top of the banquet table, Batarang in hand. A flip of the wrist and the projectile shot towards her foe.

Only to be knocked aside as Cobblepot opened his umbrella into a makeshift, but effective shield.

"I'm afraid your dexterity is no match for my cunning, my pugnacious beauty." The umbrella began to split into sections and spin, lifting the villain off the floor. "And now, I fear, I must bid you adieu!"

"Oh no you don't, Penguin!" She reached for her utility belt for another Batarang.

Nothing. She was out.

"Damn it!" She spat, _Get it together, Babs!_

Penguin's laughter echoed around her as the ceiling's acoustics surrounded his ascending form.

Her eyes darted in all directions. Plates, cups, bowls, utensils, centerpieces, food---nothing she could use.

_Hold on a sec. That might work._

Oswald Cobblepot was almost to the skylight and freedom when a circular serving platter doing its best imitation of a discus sliced perfectly between the handle and blades of his umbrella copter. The cane was no match for the projectile and the corpulent villain found himself plummeting towards certain death at the tender mercies of his ravenous pets.

"WAAAAUGH!!!"

_Crap!_

Barbara dove off the table and lunged for the rim of the exhibit.

_This is going to hurt._

She twisted in mid-air, hooked her legs between the topmost and middle bars of the railing, and reached out for the Penguin's falling form. She managed to snag Cobblepot's waist coat, which promptly tore in half. But it bought her enough time to grab the belt underneath with her other hand.

Then the full force of the Penguin's weight nearly wrenched her from the bars. Her legs screamed, but that sensation was quickly muted by the searing agony of a dislocated shoulder.

Barbara gasped in pain. Somehow in the intervening second she managed to get her other hand on the belt before her left arm gave way completely, hanging in the air like so much dead weight.

"Ouch," she whispered softly, but her voice was drowned out by the Penguin's incessant shouting.

"Get me out of here, you insufferable malcontent! How dare you sully my personage with your pedestrian machinations! You philistine! You imbecile! You---you chiropteran cretin! You low class, malicious---""

"For the love of God, shut the hell up, Oswald! Or so help me, I'll _feed_ you to those bastards!"

Stunned silence met her, broken only by the eager splashing of the marine mammals not all that far below.

She took a few deep breaths, trying to ignore the throbbing of her arm. _How am I going to get out of this mess?_

"Well, there's no need for such vulgarity, my dear," the Penguin finally muttered.

---

If he hadn't added several eyestalks to his head he would have missed it.

One of the monitors had picked up some motion on a rooftop and had zoomed in.

J'onn absorbed the extra eyes as he resumed his customary human-like appearance and hit a button to enlarge the screen.

Sure enough, two large men dressed in matching court jester outfits were carefully maneuvering a large gift wrapped box onto a rooftop.

He thumbed a few keys and the satellite imagery software isolated their faces and translated them into a three dimensional composite. Then he deftly sent the file to the League's face recognition program. Ten seconds later the results came back. The two men were known associates of the Joker.

"Finally, a lead," J'onn murmured absently.

He activated his com-link, "Martian Manhunter to Batman. Acknowledge."

The reply was crisp and almost immediate, "This had better be important, Manhunter."

"We---uh, that is to say, Diana," he lied, "has spotted known henchman of the Joker planting a package of some kind on the top of a building. Southwest corner of Kane and Dixon."

"On my way."

"Do you require assistance? We share your concern about Robin."

"Stay out of it. Batman out."

_Somethings never change. Still . . ._

He began another scan, this time looking for something very different.

---

The monocle dangled from the torn waist coat, swinging back and forth like a pendulum. Until a particularly large seal leapt up to snatch it between its sharp teeth and bite through its golden chain.

"This is getting to be a bit too adventuresome for my taste," the Penguin remarked as the carnivore disappeared back beneath the waves with a tremendous splash, "I give you leave to commence ascending, my dear."

"Easier said than done, Oswald," she growled through gritted teeth, vainly trying to get her damaged arm functioning, "What are you up to now? Two fifty? Two seventy-five?"

"A man of my station enjoys fine cuisine," Penguin retorted, clearly annoyed by the insinuation.

"Yeah, I'm sure Blackgate's cafeteria has the best bologna in the state."

"Crassness is quite unbecoming in a young woman such as yourself."

"Shut up and let me think."

The minutes passed, but no solution presented itself. Gradually her good arm began to ache and she felt her fingers start to lose purchase.

"Well, Oswald, it looks like we're about to take a swim. Hope you've fed your pets lately."

Penguin blanched, "I already told you, I don't know anything about young Robin's whereabouts! Killing me isn't going to change that fact!" He began to flail about.

"Stop struggling! I'm not trying to kill you, damn it!" She felt her grip slipping, "We're in real trouble here! STOP IT!"

The belt slipped from her grasp.

She fumbled for her grapple, but her spent fingers wouldn't respond to her commands.

Barbara girded herself to plunge after him even with only one arm working. She would wait for the splash and then drop down on the first seal to attack, hoping to spook the others and buy them some time. After that, she had no idea.

Only there was no splash. Penguin hung there, less than a yard above the surface while the nearest leopard seal was plucked out of the water and hurdled clear to the other side of the massive tank.

"May I be of assistance, Batgirl?" Martian Manhunter inquired as his faded into view.

---

Five minutes later, the Penguin was bound to a support column and Batgirl was flexing her fingers experimentally.

"Wow, that didn't hurt at all, J'onn. Totally different than the last time I had to pop it back in place."

"That is because I took the liberty of mentally suppressing your pain receptors. It will gradually wear off. I fear you will be needing that arm tonight. There will be plenty of time for pain tomorrow."

Batgirl arched an eyebrow, "You've got a lead? How?"

J'onn shook his head, "The same way I found you; Watchtower satellite cameras. But there will be time for details later. Batman is already on his way to the site, and I believe it would be best if you were there as well."

"Okay, but there's no way I'll get there in time unless it happens to be next door."

J'onn smiled.

"That won't be an issue," He put a hand to his ear, "Watchtower, emergency override. Lock on my position and teleport Batgirl to the preprogramed coordinates."

The Martian gestured toward the Penguin, "I will wait for the authorities. Good luck."

"Wait! What did you---" Batgirl's voice cut off abruptly as she disappeared.

J'onn looked around at ruined night club and then hovered out over the exhibit. The variety of wildlife on Earth fascinated him.

"My good man," Penguin said, interrupting his study of the aquatic mammals, "Someone of your obvious talents could be of significant aid to my organization."

J'onn turned to look at the secured felon.

"I could make you a _very_ wealthy . . . whatever it is you are."

J'onn's eyes flashed.

A second later twin holes melted clear through the column less than an inch above Penguin's head.

He was silent for a moment, and then spoke in hushed tones.

"I'll take that as a no."

---

The man in the fedora was nothing if not a patient man.

Living in a world drowning in conspiracies required such patience.

The patience of a saint, actually.

One couldn't expect the Free Masons, Templars, and Illuminati to divulge their secrets overnight. The Council on Foreign Relations, Area 51, and U.S. shadow government were not going to be brought into the light over the space of a few weeks. The true designs of the Vatican, Atlantis, and Easter Island wouldn't be deciphered in mere months.

And Richard Grayson was not going to be found within a single year.

No, Mr. Grayson had consumed almost 15 months of his precious time.

He worried about that sometimes. Wondered what he might have overlooked during his pursuit of the former partner of the Batman. Would he have been able to track down Elvis's new life in Witness Protection? Could he have discovered the clandestine government directives for 9/11 in the secret vaults of the Library of Congress? Should he have spent that time tracking down the party adding the nanites to Girl Scout cookies?

That last one particularly gnawed at him. He couldn't figure out the purpose behind such machinations.

And he loved the Thin Mints.

He knew most of the League thought he was odd. Some considered him to be crazy.

But he had been right about Cadmus. And that had bought him credibility.

At least for the time being.

The man sighed as he moved from the small living room of the rather dingy apartment to the kitchen. He began to systemically search the cupboards. Grayson's sudden disappearance had been somewhat out of character. Perhaps he'd been eating Girl Scout cookies.

Ten minutes later, he was convinced that wasn't the case. No cookies of any kind, in fact.

He carefully used a single finger to slightly part the curtain and looked down at the street from three floors up. The hustle and bustle of the busy Singapore waterfront district below continued unabated despite the fact it was 2:13 in the morning.

He shrugged and moved to the fridge.

Yes, he had let far too many balls drop over far too much time.

But what choice did he have, really?

Helena had asked him to find Grayson.

And that was all the motivation he needed these days.

He began to rummage through the fridge, cataloging its contents for clues into his quarry's current state of mind.

"See anything you like?" a voice called out from behind.

He frowned. Fortunately, the mask covered his features. It appeared Grayson had lost none of his stealth.

Still, he was a professional and had managed to avoid any kind of involuntary reaction.

He calmly stood up, closed the door, and turned to face his target.

"Good evening, Nightwing."

Now it was the dark-haired, well-built man in the doorway's turn to frown. He took in his quarry's appearance. No costume, no mask. Unshaven. Hair in need of a good trim but not long enough to get in his eyes. Wearing a leather jacket over a black T-shirt, gloves, jeans, and boots. The type of clothing that wouldn't limit his movements, while still providing a modicum of protection. Judging by the stains and tears, as well as the Escrima sticks currently being brandished, he was still in the game, just with a lower profile.

"I don't go by that name anymore."

The man in the fedora shrugged, "It's who you were, and that's all that really matters in the end."

"How did you find me?"

"It wasn't easy," he admitted, "But ultimately you just have to ask the right people the right questions. And that's something of a speciality of mine."

"Did _He_ send you?"

"No. He did not." That seemed to surprise Grayson, and so he pressed his advantage, "I need you to come with me."

Grayson tensed, "Not likely, Question."

"You know me?"

"I know who you are and what you do. A half-insane conspiracy theorist with mediocre martial skills. In short, I'm not impressed."

He paused. Judging by what he had determined of Grayson's diet during his search and the physique he could readily observe now, fisticuffs would probably prove counterproductive. But this man had caused Helena much pain and suffering in the not too distant past. She had told him little, but he was very adept at reading between the lines. This man had hurt her. Badly.

It didn't matter that he had eventually reaped the rewards of that relationship's demise. He felt compelled to defend his lady's honor.

And he'd be damned if he wasn't going to do everything in his power to fulfill Helena's request.

He assumed a combat stance.

"I'm afraid I must insist."


End file.
